John Wayne Busby, 72, of Medford, died unexpectedly on April 25, 2026.

John was born in Aledo, Illinois to James & Olevia “Lee” (Varner) Busby. He moved with his family to Minnesota from Illinois when he was five years old, growing up on the family farm near West Concord, MN. As a teenager, John worked every summer for the canning company picking peas. He was fascinated by the technology of the day, proudly building his own Ham Radio in the basement of the family home. John graduated from West Concord High School in 1972. Following graduation, John worked at Munsingwear in Minneapolis until he returned to the West Concord area and worked with his mother Lee at the In Town Greenhouse. In 1975, John began working at the Owatonna Tool Company and stayed with the company through the transitions to SPX and Bosch. After 40 years, John proudly retired from Bosch in 2015.

John developed a love of fishing as a boy, and it was something he insisted all his kids join him in at one time or another. Whether it was a summer fishing trip to Canada with Bill, Jamie, and Shawn, cold winter days in an icehouse on French or Roberds Lake with Bill and Bob, or taking Chuck, Cassie, and Sara to a favorite local fishing hole, fishing remained one of his favorite pastimes throughout his life. John also enjoyed drag racing and spent many years as part of his sister Janet’s crew. He was so proud of her and shared many exciting stories of the time he spent at the track.

John had a passion for lifelong learning; he was especially fascinated with science and technology. Never to be left behind, John was an early adopter of computers and the internet, making sure his home was equipped with the latest and greatest. John combined his passion for ice fishing with his interest in technology by creating a first‑of‑its‑kind ice fishing website that was featured in a Northwest Airlines in‑flight publication. After he retired, he discovered the wonders of video games, SIMS and No Man Sky being two favorites. He enjoyed gaming with Chuck and connecting with other streamers in the online gaming community.

John was a proud father of Shawn, Chuck, Cassie and Sara. He loved the time he spent with each of them. John made great family memories, whether it was spending time visiting Shawn in Colorado or road tripping with Chuck to spend Christmas with Cassie, Sara and his grandsons, Emmett and Nolan in Arizona. He always had a bad dad joke at the ready and enjoyed laughs and good times spent with his kids.

John is survived by his children, Shawn (Holly) Busby, Chuck Ross, Cassandra Ross, Sara (Ryan) Busby; Grandchildren, Arianna, Edward, Samuel, Emmett and Nolan; Siblings, Carolyn Mackey, Joanne (Charles) Staub, Bill (Sharon) Busby, Linda (Robert) Beach, Janet (James) Busby and many nieces and nephews.

John was preceded in death by his parents, Jim and Olevia “Lee” Busby; sister, Elaine Crandall; brothers-in-law, George Crandall, Patrick Mackey; and nephew, Jaime Busby. 

There are no services scheduled at this time.