John Propst was
a member of the
Albemarle Ruritan Club
Obituary from the Hill and Wood Funeral Service website:
John William Propst, Jr., of Charlottesville, died at Martha Jefferson Hospital on Sunday, April 26, 2015. Mr. Propst was born on April 18, 1917 in Hickory, North Carolina, to the late John William and Gilie Hendrix Propst.
He was also predeceased by his wife, Betty Landblom Propst, his brothers Giles B. Propst of Roan Mountain, Tennessee, and Noel L. Propst of Boydton, Virginia, and his sister, Hazel Lowe of Alberta, Virginia. He is survived by his son David L. Propst and his wife Jennifer of Albuquerque, New Mexico, his daughter Betty Ann Garth and her husband Lyle, his daughter Arlene Propst, his granddaughters Gilie Garth and Melissa Suttle and her husband Rick; and his great grandsons Austin Thatcher and Nick Suttle, all of Charlottesville. He is also survived by nieces and nephews and his caregiver, Denise Lloyd.
Shortly after Mr. Propst’s birth, his family moved to Mecklenburg County, Virginia, where his father taught school and farmed. Mr. Propst graduated from Boydton High School in 1935 and from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1942 where he received a degree in engineering and was in the Cadet Corps. After graduation he was commissioned and sent for training at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. After completing his training, he commanded a training company. While stationed there, he met Betty Landblom in Washington, D.C. They were married in 1944, and shortly after he received orders for Europe, where he commanded a company of Combat Engineers for the duration of the war. Following the war, he remained in Austria working with the postwar recovery effort.
Upon his return to the U.S. in 1946, he and Mrs. Propst moved to Blacksburg, Virginia, where he worked at V.P.I. In 1949, they moved to Charlottesville and Mr. Propst went into the agricultural construction business. In 1961, Mr. Propst joined the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the family moved to Dhaka, Bangladesh for 6 years, followed by 8 years in Katmandu, Nepal, and served several short tours in Turkey and the Philippines. In Bangladesh and Nepal, he worked in advisory capacities on various agricultural irrigation projects to improve rice production. While in Nepal, Mr. Propst became an avid birder and was the first to document the occurrence of the Greater Flamingo in Nepal. In the Philippines, he worked with relief efforts following the eruption of Taal Volcano.
In 1974, Mr. and Mrs. Propst retired and returned to Charlottesville. During his 40 years of retirement, Mr. Propst raised cattle, gardened, and worked with numerous charitable organizations, including the Albemarle Ruritan Club. He was a member of University Baptist Church for 66 years.
A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 30, 2015, at University Baptist Church, the Reverend Bob Badgett officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the University Baptist Church, 1223 West Main Street, Charlottesville, Virginia, 22903; or the Charlottesville –Albemarle S.P.C.A., 3355 Berkmar Driver, Charlottesville, Virginia, 22901.