Thursday, December 13, 2018
Jack was a dear friend of our family in so many ways. He worked with my father John, my brother Doug, and me at Owens-Illinois. He was the Boy Scout troop leader for me and my brothers Doug and John. And he was a vital force in my family's walk of faith at the First Presbyterian Church in Vineland, where he also knew my mother Carol, and my wife Robin. My dad was very pleased to have Jack as a colleague, and always had good things to say about their work together. I remember many campouts and hikes with Jack, and my brothers and I still talk fondly and regularly of those things decades after they happened. And prior to his stint for O-I in Ohio, Jack showed me the ropes for maintaining lots of the infrastructure at the church. I'll never forget the Saturday Jack "coaxed" me up the rickety ladder in the church's bell tower so we could do some work up there; I said over a dozen "Our Father" prayers on my way up, and fortunately had ample time to say another dozen on my way down.
Jack was a great influence on my brothers and me in our formative years, and I am so very glad that he was a significant part of the life of our family. His was a life well-lived, and he was such a wonderful person to be a role model for us. We will miss him, and we will always be grateful for the love he shared with us.
