John 'Jack' Arthur Heitz

JOHN "JACK" ARTHUR HEITZ

Cedar Rapids

John "Jack" Arthur Heitz, 86, of Mesa, Ariz., formerly of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, passed away June 13, 2019, after a sudden cardiac event in the setting of longstanding heart disease. Visitation will be held on Friday, June 21, 2019, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home. A prayer vigil will begin at 4 p.m. A funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, June 22, 2019, at 10 a.m. at St. Jude Catholic Church in Cedar Rapids. There will be a visitation held one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will be at Mount Calvary Cemetery.

Jack was born on Nov. 3, 1932, the son of William and Irene (Sanders) Heitz. Jack was the brother of his only sibling, Elaine (Heitz) Lorenz, who preceded him in death on July 7, 2018. Jack and Elaine were blessed to experience the longest relationship each was privileged to have with another on Earth. Jack was united in marriage with Mary Lou Berry on Sept. 17, 1955. Jack and Mary Lou were married for over 45 years, until Mary Lou's passing on April 9, 2001. Jack and Mary Lou were blessed with two children from their union, Linda Heitz (Eric) Kral and William "Bill" (Julie) Heitz. Jack was the proud grandfather of Bill and Julie's four children, Justin (Abby), Jared, Logan and Blake, and a great-grandbaby on the way.

On May 14, 2011, Jack was blessed to be united in marriage with Virginia Irene Cameron. Their union continued until Jack's passing.

Jack was the proud uncle of Bob and Elaine Lorenz's seven children, Bob (Deb) Lorenz, Mary Lorenz (Ron) Mikkola, Dick (Jenny) Lorenz, Theresa Lorenz (Pete) Whittlesey, Jim (Molly) Lorenz, Paul (Annette) Lorenz and Kathy Lorenz (Scott) Franz. Jack also was the proud uncle of Mike and Marlene (Jo) Cambridge's three children (Mary Lou's sister), Jim (Denise) Cambridge, Chris Cambridge (Jim) Stevenson and John Cambridge.

Jack served in the National Guard for 2 1/2 years and then military service in the U.S. Army at Aberdeen Proving Grounds starting in 1951. Jack's business life started with a position at International Harvester in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Then Jack went into the beer sales business with these companies: Pabst Brewing Co., Schmitt Beer Co. and G. Heileman Brewing Co. In addition, Jack was the owner of Max Bar in Marion, Iowa. In 1977, Jack continued in the beer business with his purchase and ownership of Kuba Distributing in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Jack was proud to run Kuba Distributing along with his son, Bill. Jack also operated a lock and key business from home.

For those lucky enough to know Jack, everyone knew he was a "Jack-of-all-trades" in life and often referred to as master of the following:

Master draftsman, builder of homes and dreams!

Master chef!

Master party planner!

Master storyteller!

For everyone privileged to know and be part of his captive audiences, Jack was an incredibly talented master storyteller. There never will be another Jack Heitz, who had the time of his life on Earth and will continue to in heaven. How lucky are those who knew Jack, someone it is so hard to say goodbye to. We take comfort knowing that we will be together again through eternal life.

In lieu of flowers and in accordance with Jack's wishes, Jack's family requests contributions be made to the American Heart Association.

Online condolences may be conveyed at www.cedarmemorial.com.