John Douglas Counts, 73, of De Soto died Sept. 11, 2024, at Mercy Hospital Jefferson in Crystal City. Mr. Counts was an instructor at Vatterott Technical School and an HVAC technician. He was a member of the Community of Christ. He loved Sunday drives with his wife on the backroads, telling stories of the family and ancestors to his daughter, rebuilding cars and hunting with his son, making his grandchildren laugh, fishing with his friends and walking through the woods down on the farm. He enjoyed woodworking and making keepsakes for his family. He will be remembered for his sense of humor. Born Aug. 19, 1951, in St. Louis, he was the son of the late Norma Jean (Kuntz) and David Lloyd Counts.
He is survived by his wife of 52 years: Donna (Chasten) Counts of De Soto; three children: Tonya (Peter) Schmidt of De Soto, Sean (Jennifer) Counts of De Soto and Kathleen (Mitch) Falk of San Antonio, Texas; seven grandchildren: Victoria Drinnin of Austin, Texas, James Falk of Austin, Texas, Madyson Falk of Austin, Texas, John Schmidt of De Soto, Dalton Falk of San Antonio, Texas, David Counts of De Soto and Logan Falk of San Antonio, Texas; an uncle: Richard (Yvonne) Counts of Highland, Ill.; and two aunts: Ann Stafford of Warrenton and Barbara Tarrien of St. Louis; and many other family members and friends.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents: William and Delphia (Hart) Kuntz and
Cecil and Lydia (Barton) Counts.
A celebration of life is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 20, at the De Soto Community Center, 400 Boyd St.