John Edward Semmes Jr. ’39

After graduation, Jack joined the Marine Corps in 1940 and served in the Pacific theater for three years. He then returned to the United States to teach at the Marine School until 1946, when he retired from the Corps with the rank of colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve.  

He began a career in industrial relations and labor negotiations, first in Singapore, where he worked for a shipping company, then back in the U.S., where he joined Davison Chemical Co., a subsidiary of W.R. Grace. After 20 years with Grace, he left to work for the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church in Manhattan. He retired in 1972 and moved to Hilton Head Island, where he could enjoy golf and fishing.

Jack’s first wife, Elizabeth Owens Semmes, and his second wife, Mary Semmes, both predeceased him. His third wife, Dolores Semmes, survives him as do his two daughters, Robin Rourke and Dinny Carreiro. We offer them our sincere sympathy.