With sadness, we report that John died Apr. 17, 2004, from a blood clot while recovering from knee surgery at his home in Ashland, Mass. He was 46.
John, who was born in Henderson, N.C., won a scholarship to attend Princeton. After college he obtained a master's in international affairs from Johns Hopkins and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.
John had a distinguished career in business and had a tremendous knack for garnering media attention for his clients. He eventually became vice president at the Boston offices of Porter Novelli, an international public-relations firm. Last year he started his own management consulting firm with Marcus Goncalves, who remembers him quite fondly.
"Regardless of all his credentials and accolades, John was always willing to mix with everyone. He was a very giving guy," Goncalves said. "It was very moving at the funeral to see so many people speak about how John had impacted their lives."
A member of Boston Church of Christ, where John was very active, Goncalves said, "John introduced my son to the word of God."
John is survived by six of his seven siblings.
The Class of 1980