John Kimberlin – June 26, 2023

John Paul Kimberlin was born to Diana Hankins and Arnold Kimberlin Jr. (deceased) on Thursday, November 1, 1979, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He entered his eternal rest on Monday, June 26, 2023, in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

John was an only child, born into a military family. He was privileged to experience many different parts of the world. John gleaned knowledge from his travels and made friends from different backgrounds and cultures. 

John enjoyed movies, reading, drawing, and gaming. He loved all music genres and found great joy in singing with his mom.

John graduated from Woodland Park High School in the scenic mountains of Colorado. He wanted to serve his country and joined the United States Navy. He served as a Navy corpsman, stationed at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD. John followed in his Grandpa Hank and Mom Diana’s footsteps, caring for people. John stepped into a critical role assisting in the medical care of Navy personnel and their families. After John’s tenure in the US Navy, he redirected his career path to computer science, attending college at Colorado Tech.

John married his high school sweetheart, Shelby Owens. John and Shelby welcomed beautiful twin daughters, Dianna Marie and Katerina Leigh into their family. John and Shelby later parted ways but loved their daughters deeply.

John was blessed with his second family, Jamie Morning Dawn Ernsdorf (deceased), and little daughter, Thea Anne Kimberlin (deceased). The tragic accident that claimed the lives of his fiancée and child weighed heavily on John until the day he passed. Family and friends still mourn Jamie and Thea’s passing, and they will forever be in our hearts. Thea will find her forever resting place next to her Daddy at Pikes Peak National Cemetery.  After losing his family, John sold his home in Alabama and moved to Colorado Springs where he resided with his mom, Diana.

John is survived by his loving mother, Diana Hankins; daughter, Katarina Kimberlin (Adam Boothe), Diana Kimberlin-Lewis (Gatlin); granddaughter, Lottie Mae Lewis; maternal grandmother, Mary Hankins; great-uncle, Joe Martinez; great-aunt, Martha Price (Jack); aunt, Sandi Barnett (Mike); uncle, Guy Woods; aunt, Sharon Reynolds (Rick); uncle, Charles L. Hankins (Donna); aunt, Beverly Chasteen; aunt, Lisa Weddle; cousins: Alisa Easler (Andrew), Dillon, Haylee, and Shayna Easler; Nicole Ross, Kaycee Davis, Kevin Davis, and Taylor Chase (Trey), Percy Chase; Melissa Kepley (Jonathan), Bentley and Madison Kepley; Kaylee Hankins; and Autumn Weddle.

John was preceded in death by his father, Arnold Kimberlin Jr; fiancée, Jamie Morning Dawn Ernsdorf; daughter, Thea Anne Kimberlin; great-grandparents: Candido and Sally Martinez; cousin, Jack Womble; grandfather, Charles “Hank” Hankins; uncle, Robert “Bobby” Hankins; aunt, Renee Woods (June 27, 2023).

Services for John will be held Friday, September 15, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. at Pikes Peak National Cemetery, 10545 Drennan Road, Colorado Springs, CO, 80925.