Saddened to hear as well.

Been agesm but I remember back in the late 80s when I was doing our club newsletter, John would always give me tips and advice.
We exchaged newsletters for years, but lost touch over time.

Thoughts and prayers for his family and friends.

I never met John in person, but I remember his tenure at AmSpac (I distinctly remember thinking "Wow! New magazine, in COLOR, and what a layout! I need to keep buying these!" - I bought copies at the local hobby shop, didn't realize I could get them "free" with an NAR membership. The joys of a "living in a Midwest swamp town" lifestyle, I guess).

Flash forward a few years, and I re-discovered John, this time due to his Interceptor body wraps. I have several that grace various models, and loved his unique creativity in the styles he produced and shared with the rest of us.

While I never met him "in person", I feel like I met him --- we exchanged emails from time to time about tips and techniques, and we shared a love of the Aurora model "Ragnarok" - so it was a delight when he offered a wrap set for it. For those who remember this plastic kit, there was an "interceptor" craft it carried (where the actual model rocket keeps its motor mount)...I was (am) working on a "display only" version of the interceptor craft for use in the motor mount when the rocket is on static display. John's last note to me was for me to promise to share my completed efforts with him - even a little thing like this got him excited. After this sad news, I know whose name will be labeled on the side of the vehicle as the pilot - "Pursley".

My sincerest condolences and sympathies to John's family. While our hobby lost one of its brightest stars, they lost husband, son, father, uncle...so whatever your beliefs, I think we all wish John the best in the next great adventure.

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Dean Fox
NAR #53946SR

---- "Wherever you go, there you are"

Has anyone heard any details of John's final arrangements? Like maybe seen an obit? Or know if there were any services planned?

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NAR 20602
used to be "powderburner" in another life

Kay Goforth posted this on FB earlier today:

It is with great sadness that I’m posting the death of a friend and fellow rocket enthusiast, John Lee Pursley.

Last November, John was in a horrific motorcycle accident in the Dallas area where he has lived for the last five years. He has been in the hospital since the accident and was never able to fully recover from his injuries.

John was an IT guru and had a passion for all things space related and rocketry. John was involved in restoring the Saturn V rocket housed at NASA’s Johnsons Space Center, the Space Shuttle Atlantis at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and several other rockets at the Huntsville Space Center in Alabama. In 2005 The History Channel did a special on the restoration of the Saturn V rocket in Houston and John was consulted and interviewed for the program. The special is “Apollo: The Race Against Time” and the video is available on Vimeo. John said working on these rockets and spacecrafts was the highlight of his life.
John competed in scale modeling on a former Internats team. He was also a past editor for “Sport Rocketry.”

John was recognized worldwide for his spacecraft models. His ex-wife Connie Bear Sipp was able to visit John just a few days before his death.

God Bless you, John. You will be missed.

Connie wants to thank everyone who donated to assist John in his time of need. Plans are in the works to have John’s contribution to the sport carried on.

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Scott D. Hansen
Ye Olde Rocket Shoppe - Your One Stop BAR Shoppe!
Ye Olde Rocket Plans - OOP Rocket Plans From 38 Companies!
Ye Olde Rocket Forum
WOOSH NAR Section #558

Scott-
Thank you for passing this along to us here.

Wishing John perpetual fair winds and sunny skies.
GH

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When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !
Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, and HAVOC !

I didn't visit this site for a few days and come back to learn this - words can't convey what I'm feeling.
George, thanks for posting that - I'd done business with John but didn't know or appreciate just how involved and knowledgeable he was about the Saturn. Now that it's too late, I'm wishing I'd had a chance to have a beer and discuss rocketry in general and the Saturn V is particular.

Sure hope someone can pick up his business - it was a great contribution to rocketry and it would be a shame to loose that.

This is truly sad news. I met John at NARCON in 2002. He had a Little Joe I model there that was an inspiration. I remember asking him a lot of “stupid questions” but he answered all of them. I also recently built an Interceptor using his wraps. RIP John.

John and I did a lot of business over the years. Did I mention I like Interceptors?

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I did not notice the passers by, and they did not notice me.

Those are great. John would be proud! Did *I* mention I have even more Interceptors built up than that? A couple have skins that have not yet been released (but somehow they will get out there this year). Think US Navy Jolly Rogers markings, silver metallic United State Space Force. How about an Interceptor with WWII-ish PinUp art? And some very politically incorrect alternate history where the Civil War never ended.

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Buzz McD.

Avid rocketeer since 1967.
NAR 13559 / L2

Sadly, I never met John, and never got around to buying Interceptor skins on my list, though I did use a skin for a K-21 GT clone that turned out nice. Sure wish I could have heard some of his SV knowledge in person.

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Paul
If we weren't all crazy, we would go insane - Jimmy Buffett
NAR #87246 www.wooshrocketry.org