John Dewey Hartup Jr.

John was born in Long Beach, California, and named after Admiral Dewey. He was the son of John Dewey Hartup (1898–1986) of Lore City, Ohio, and Minnie Hilker Hartup (1895–1981) of Fredericksburg, Texas. For his second birthday, he received a tricycle and a baby brother, James Calvin Hartup (1930–1982), named after Calvin Coolidge. His parents remembered him as an exceptionally active child: “When he was ten months old, he could crawl as fast as a person could walk, and six years later the callouses were still on his knees.” John stayed vigorous, curious, and always on the move throughout his life.

He attended five grade schools and two high schools in San Jose, Alameda, and Long Beach, California; Medford and Portland, Oregon; and Phoenix, Arizona. His father’s work with Standard Oil Company of California required the family to move frequently. John enlisted in the U.S. Army on his seventeenth birthday as World War II was coming to a close and served fifteen months of occupation duty in Korea from 1945 to 1947.

In 1950, he earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Washington State University through the GI Bill. After graduation, he was called back to active duty and served another two and a half years in the Korean War with the Army Corps of Engineers. As part of the 2nd Engineer Special Brigade, which specialized in amphibious landings, John provided logistical support to combat troops at the Port of Incheon. His unit left Korea for Japan in October 1951, and he was discharged in March 1953, with the rank of First Lieutenant. Later in life, John shared his wartime experiences with local high school students and community groups, participated in the Oregon Trail Chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association, and revisited Korea with family and fellow veterans.

Upon his discharge in 1953, John began working for Standard Oil Company of California. While in the Los Angeles office, he met his future wife, Shirlene, and they married in 1956. John went on to work for Chevron for 38 years, with assignments in Seattle, Los Angeles, Honolulu, San Francisco, Medford, and Portland. He began his career building service stations and retired as manager of the Chevron Willbridge Terminal in Portland.

In alignment with his leadership at Willbridge, John played a pivotal role in the formation of both the Maritime Fire & Safety Association (MFSA) and the Clean Rivers Cooperative (CRC) based in Portland. He served as the first president of the CRC Board of Directors in 1971, and as president of the MFSA Board of Directors in 1988. In 2024, he was honored to christen a new CRC skimming vessel, the OSRV John Hartup.

John was a devoted member of First Baptist Church in downtown Portland, serving on numerous committees for more than forty years. He participated in mission trips to Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua. He also served on the boards of Linfield University and Berkeley School of Theology. John was a Boy Scout, a Mason, an avid stamp collector, and the family photographer until the advent of mobile phone cameras. He had a lifelong love of the outdoors and enjoyed camping, hiking, ocean swimming, gardening, and tending fruit trees and berries. For relaxation, he favored warm-weather retreats in Hawaii and Palm Desert, and delighted in watching football and tennis.

John is survived by his daughters, Connie Shearer (Steve) of Portland and Cheryl Hartup (Javier Bonnin) of Ponce, Puerto Rico; and by his grandchildren, Grant Shearer (Elizabeth), Claire Shearer, and Luke Shearer (partner Willow Cope). His family is deeply blessed by his enduring faith in God, and by the love, kindness, goodness, guidance, and generosity he shared throughout his life.

The family extends heartfelt gratitude to the staff and residents of Laurel Parc at Bethany Village for the care and companionship they provided John.

Mr. Hartup will be laid to rest with honors in a private ceremony at Willamette National Cemetery.

A memorial service will be held at noon on Saturday, January 10, 2026, at First Baptist Church of Portland. For those who wish to make memorial contributions, the family suggests gifts to the First Baptist Foundation at First Baptist Church of Portland.