Des Moines is roughly 250 miles from me, and I ran into John and Bob Baldus often back in the day. When I saw Bob a couple of years ago, I asked about John and was saddened to hear he was in poor health.
He produced some really nice kits and apparently was a great mentor to you, but I mostly remember how much fun it was to be around him. Very fond memories of time spent with him, and my thoughts and prayers for comfort go out to those he leaves behind.
Dennis