John Gerard Walsh (Jack) was born on September 1, 1936 in Chicago, Illinois, the third child of John and Dorothy Walsh. He grew up in Maywood, Illinois attending twelve years of Catholic school. His Catholic faith continued to be one of the constants in his life. He never missed attending Sunday Mass, even when travelling, and once he retired, he usually attended daily Mass, as well. He was very proud of being Irish.
Jack had a very interesting career, working mostly on military contracts through Hughes Aircraft or Burroughs, and later Raytheon. He started out as a computer repairman, when businesses were just beginning to use computers, and then began programming torpedoes, which took him from the Caribbean to the Arctic, where the crew stayed in tents on the ice while testing torpedoes under the ice. He raised his family mostly in California, but spent several years working at Bangor Naval Base Kitsap. When that contract ended, he retired to Sequim. He always said that of all the places that he had lived, all over the United States, he loved Sequim the best.
Jack was an active volunteer for St. Vincent de Paul at St. Joseph Parish in Sequim, making house calls and delivering surplus bread to charitable organizations. Jack was also a talented artist, with his preferred medium being colored pencil drawings. He also enjoyed writing, and self-published two novels and several short stories and family biographies.
Jack loved to travel and had fond memories of cross-country motorhome trips, as well as family camping trips, visiting family and friends out of state, several cruises, trips to Hawaii and several trips abroad visiting England, Scotland, Ireland, Norway, the Netherlands, Mexico, Panama, and the Islands of the Caribbean.
Jack loved to talk, and always struck up conversations with anyone in the vicinity. He also loved animals and always had a dog, or a cat, or both. When out riding his bike, he always stopped to pet the horses or cows that he passed, and often stopped by the dog park to pet the dogs and chat with their owners.
Dementia robbed Jack of so much of what he loved to do. But through it all he was still happy, almost all the time, and looking forward to his nightly glass of wine. He passed away at home, on April 22, 2021 with his wife at his side, bidding him fond farewell and asking him to save her a place in heaven.
Jack leaves behind his wife, Marilyn; daughters Kaye (Dan) Reshaw of Rancho Cucamonga, California; Eileen Groves (Richard) of Farmersville, Texas; Maureen (Aaron) Fischer of Canastota, New York; Paula Walsh of Sequim, Lisa (Rob) Kelbel of Colville, Washington; sons Michael Walsh (Fran) of San Bruno, California and Charles Sutton (Suzanne) of Menifee, California; and step-children Dena (Matt) Heath of Hillsboro, Oregon and Vince Sage of Aloha, Oregon, as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Jack was preceded in death by his parents, John and Dorothy Walsh, his sisters and their spouses, Maureen (Bill) Dickson and Dolores (Gus) Serio, wife Patricia "Patti" Peters, and a daughter, Colleen Mawas (James). We wish to thank Forrest Davis and Nick Lester for their companionship and care for Jack.
A funeral Mass with a reception following will be held in September (more details to follow) at St. Joseph Parish in Sequim. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Jack’s name to St. Vincent de Paul, St. Joseph chapter at 121 E. Maple St. Sequim, WA 98382 or Volunteer Hospice of Clallam County at 829 East 8th Street, Port Angeles, WA 98362. Linde-Price of Sequim was in charge of arrangements.
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