John Bernard Dakin III

  John Dakin, 80, of Las Vegas, NV died of a heart attack in his home on August 21, 2025. He was born in Lansing, Michigan on June 22, 1945, to Fidelis and John B. Dakin Jr., who served in the US Air Force. They lived in Germany while John was a child, and after returning to the United States he attended Clovis High School in New Mexico. Upon graduating, he served in the Navy and later went on to work in the mobile home manufacturing industry. After his father became Vice President of Construction for Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, his parents made Nevada their final home, and John moved there and opened his own business, The House Works. He later relocated to Boston where he lived for nearly twenty years with his wife Joanna and stepchildren Anastasia and Tatiana, but he never acclimated to New England’s cold, grey winters. John finally returned to Las Vegas with Joanna and followed in his father’s footsteps, working as Director of Purchasing for Marnell Corrao Associates construction.
   Johnny, as many affectionately knew him, was a lover of the great outdoors. He loved hiking at Zion canyon in Utah, camping at Bear Brook State Park in New Hampshire, and salmon fishing in Oregon. With Joanna, he traveled the world as well as the United States and developed a particular affinity for the National Parks. He and Joanna spent two months exploring Alaska, and they took multiple trips to Italy to visit his daughter Lanie when she lived abroad. He enjoyed visiting his daughter Ellie and grandchildren in South Carolina and relished his yearly fishing trips with his son John B., his grandsons, and his son-in-law Francesco. He was a skilled carpenter, building furniture for Anastasia and Tatiana when they were children, and later acting as all-around handyman for their various apartments and eventual homes. Witty and sharp, Johnny never missed an opportunity to crack a joke or tease the ones he loved. He was a devoted husband to Joanna for 44 years and after retiring, they spent most afternoons in their lush backyard, enjoying the colorful plants, abundant birds, and desert sunshine.
    John is preceded in death by his sister, Sharon Louise Dakin, his father John B. Dakin Jr., and his mother Fidelis (Bergeron) Dakin. He is survived by his wife Joanna Clark, his stepdaughter Anastasia Tsaloukidis of Las Vegas, NV, his stepdaughter Tatiana (Tsaloukidis) MacGillivray and husband Bryan of Austin, TX, his daughter Lanie Joy Dakin and husband Francesco Bellisari of Las Vegas, NV, his daughter Ellie Beth Dakin of Indian Land, South Carolina, and his son John B. Dakin IV and wife Debbie of Allen, TX, as well as grandchildren Carly, Shane, Isabella, Brando, Roxie, Enzo, Ben, Evelyn, Lucy, and Max. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The National Parks Conservation Association in John’s honor.