Dr. John Sinning DS’48 passed away on August 22, 2014 at his home in Davenport, Iowa. He was born in 1932 in Oberlin, Kansas, the son of Dr. John and Helen Sinning. He grew up in Marshalltown, Iowa and came to Deep Springs fresh out of high school in the summer of 1948. After two years, he transferred to Cornell University and ultimately received his medical degree from Cornell University Medical School in New York City. He completed his rotating internship at University of Oregon Medical School in Portland, Oregon, where he met and married Beverly Reinhardt in 1957.
He then served two years in the US Army in Karachi, Pakistan, as a captain in the Army Medical Corps. He was the first military medical officer deployed to Pakistan for the purpose of establishing a medical outpatient clinic for The Headquarters Military Assistance Advisory Group and their families. He also made periodic field trips to outlying isolated areas to attend and care for military personnel and their dependents. He was awarded an Army commendation for meritorious service.
John completed a general surgery residency at the University of Indiana Medical School in Indianapolis in 1965, whereupon he and his family settled in Davenport. He practiced orthopedics there until his retirement in 1998. He was a fellow of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society. He also was a member of the American Medical Association, Iowa Medical Association, and the Iowa Orthopaedic Association. John’s lifelong passion for learning led him to serve on the Davenport School Board for 11 years. As president of the Iowa QC Blood Bank, he facilitated the merger of the Iowa and Illinois Blood Banks in the Mississippi Valley Blood Bank. As a long-time member of the First Presbyterian Church of Davenport, he served as an Elder and Deacon and taught Sunday School. He is survived by his loving wife of 56 years, Beverly, their children Alicia, John III, Andrew and James (all married) and their eight grandchildren.