XENIA — Greene County lost a native son when John C. Beason, 101, passed away on Sunday, February 21, 2016, at . The eighth child of John L and Mary Elizabeth Bales Beason, John was born on December 26, 1914, and graduated from Xenia Central High School in 1933. John married Helen McKenzie Beason on December 1, 1945, after his return from serving in WWII in the South Pacific. He joined the Ohio National Guard and then enlisted with the Army serving with the 37th Division. John was a radio operator and earned the Bronze Star during his service in the Philippines and Guadalcanal. John had the opportunity to join the Honor Flight trip to Washington DC and enjoyed the WWII memorial as well as the other monuments in the city. Of the many occupations John held during his life, he most enjoyed farming. He loved to retell stories of crops grown and would talk about farming whenever he found an interested ear. He spent the majority of his career with the Xenia City School System where he held a supervisory position in the maintenance department retiring in 1975. After the 1974 tornado, he was instrumental in helping the Xenia School System recover. A life-time member of the Greene County Fish and Game Association, he loved to fish and enjoyed mushroom hunting in the spring. He was a member of Memorial United Presbyterian Church and the Beavercreek Senior Citizens. One of John's goals in life was to live to be 100 years old and he met this goal in 2014 with a celebration with family and friends. He was preceded in death by his loving and devoted wife, Helen, a first grade teacher at McKinley School in Xenia for many years, his parents, brothers Roscoe, Marion, Erba, Chester, and Wilbur and sisters Ruth Beason Mills and Mary and Phyllis Beason. He has two surviving daughters, Sally White (Lonnie) of Xenia, OH and Molly Bowell (Thomas) of Sandusky, OH. Four grandchildren, Melissa Garringer and Brent White, Xenia, OH, Ben (Amber) Bowell and Josh (Sarah) Bowell of Portland, OR and great grandchildren, Blake Bramer, Georgetown, IN, McKenzie Garringer, Xenia, OH and Quentin and Vera Bowell of Portland, OR. He is also survived by numerous nieces, nephews and friends. The family wishes to thank the staff at Hospitality Home East and Dr. Richard Byers for their kind care and attention during the last three and a half years. Services will be held at 10am, Saturday, March 5, at Neeld Funeral Home, 1276 N Detroit St., Xenia, with Rev. Kelley W. Shin officiating. Visitation will be held from 6-8pm Friday at the funeral home. Burial will be in New Burlington Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to . Condolences may be made to the family at www.NeeldFuneralHome.com.