John D. Guffey Jr.'s Obituary
John D. (“J.D.”) Guffey, Jr. passed away on March 8, 2009. J.D. was born on February 11, 1922 on a dairy farm near Shawnee, Oklahoma. His parents, John D. Guffey, Sr. and Maude Seitz Guffey were early Oklahoma Pioneers having moved there in 1906 before statehood. J.D. graduated from Shawnee High School and attended the University of Oklahoma on a football scholarship. World War II interrupted his college career and he joined the Army Air Corps. After cadet training, he became a P-51 pilot and was sent to the China-Burma-India area in southeast Asia where he joined the 2nd Air Command Group flying P-51s from a home base near Calcutta, India and a combat base in Burma. After the war, he joined his brothers, Roy and Russell, and for over 20 years was a partner in Roy Guffey Drilling company. In 1969, he formed Apollo Drilling & Exploration, Inc. with C. Jack Wilson, and continued in the oil and gas drilling business in the Rocky Mountain area, Oklahoma, Mississippi and Alabama until he sold the business in 1980. He continued, however, to participate in various phases of the oil and gas business for the remainder of his life. In 1946, J.D. married Johnnie Wages, who passed away in 1970 leaving two daughters, Pamela Guffey Balser of Dallas and Patti Guffey Jones of Dumas, Arkansas. In 1971, J.D. married his wife of 38 years, Martha Dalrymple Smith, who survives. In addition to his wife Martha, daughter Pamela and her husband, Alan Balser, and daughter Patti and her husband, Michael Jones, J.D. is survived by a daughter, Kathleen Blair of Dallas and her husband, Robert Blair; a son, Scott Guffey of Dallas; seven grandchildren, Laura Balser, Charlotte Balser, Anne Jones, Katherine Britt Jones, John D. (“Jack”) Blair, Andrew Blair and William Blair; a sister, Ethel Simpson of San Antonio, Texas; and several nieces and nephews. J.D. was preceded in death by his parents, his brothers, Roy and Russell, and sisters, Faye, Vestani and Bertha. A long-time resident of Dallas, Mr. Guffey was active in business affairs and was an avid golfer and fly fisherman. He was a long-time member of Highland Park Presbyterian Church, the Dallas Petroleum Club, and Brook Hollow Golf Club in Dallas. He was also a member of the Old Baldy Club in Saratoga, Wyoming and the Desert Mountain Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial donations be made to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, or the charity of one’s choice. A Memorial Service will be held at Highland Park Presbyterian Church, 3821 University Blvd., Dallas, Texas 75205, (214) 526-7457 on Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 2:00 p.m.
What’s your fondest memory of John?
What’s a lesson you learned from John?
Share a story where John's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with John you’ll never forget.
How did John make you smile?