John B Cochran

John Bernard Cochran, age 88, of Vernal, Utah died Saturday November 24, 2012. He was born January 16, 1924 in Angora, Nebraska, the son of Amanda Katherine Grove and John Wesley Cochran. He had two brothers and seven sisters. He married Twila Rae Bigelow on September 11th, 1953. They had three children - Terry (Karen), Greg (Karen), and Paul (Linda) John grew up in Bridgeport Nebraska. He enjoyed sports and hunting. He earned all-state honors in both football and basketball as a junior. He took his last two years of high school at the same time so he could join the marines. He entered when he was 19 years old. After boot camp and six weeks of Sea School he boarded the USS Honolulu. He was trained on all of the different types of guns on ship but got stuck on the 20 millimeter. During one conflict 90 feet of the bow was blown off by a torpedo. They limped it into Pearl Harbor at which time he transferred off. While at Pearl Harbor he was on MP duty for 5 months. One hot day while guarding the main gate, he had his sleeve cuffs tucked under. A limousine with flags on the fenders came through. He saluted as the car went through. After proceeding only a short distance it backed up and Admiral Chester W Nimitz rolled down his window and asked if that was regulation. He answered No Sir. A few minutes later he was arrested and put in the brig. Shortly after getting out of the brig he was ordered to report to the Admirals office. The admiral said he may have been too hard on him and offered him a position driving the admiral around. He spent two months as a driver and then worked in the Naval Ammunition Depot for the balance of his duty. After he got out of the military, he went back to Bridgeport where he married and had one son Dennis Roy. They were later divorced. While living in Bridgeport he started playing basketball and met a drilling crew from Lovell, Wyoming. This was his first exposure to the Mormons. They offered him a job on their drilling rig which he took because it was better money. They drilled in the southwest part of Nebraska. After about a year the rig moved to Utah and they asked him if he wanted to go with them. The first hole was south of Bridgeland and was called the Ute Tribal 1. He married Twila Rae Bigelow on the 13th of September 1953. After their marriage he continued to work as a driller on oil rigs living in several states as well Saudi Arabia, Basra Iraq. They moved back to the Basin in 1963 where he worked for Stauffer Chemical. He worked for them for 19 years, working in several locations. He retired in 1981. He has held various positions in the LDS church and later in life, spent many days serving in the temple. He spent his retirement years fishing and fixing things. He is survived by his wife, three sons and their spouses with 17 grandchildren and 25 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, all his siblings, his son Dennis, and a great granddaughter Paetyn. Funeral services will be held Saturday, December 1, 2012 at 1:00 p.m. at the Vernal Stake Center (850 West 100 North). Friends and family may call one hour prior to services at the church. Burial will be in the Vernal Memorial Park with military honors by the American Legion Post 124 and 11 and the U.S. Marine Corps. Arrangements are entrusted to the care of the Blackburn Vernal Mortuary.