John S. Krecker ’55

John, a glass company executive who was nudged by his wife into mastering Japanese cooking, died Jan. 22, 2024.

He was born Sept. 18, 1933, in East Orange, N.J., son of Preston Krecker 1926. John attended East Orange High School, where he participated in student government, track, and publications. At Princeton, he studied at the Woodrow Wilson School and joined Campus Club. He participated in freshman 150-pound crew, Whig-Clio, and the Keycept Program. His senior-year roommates were Howard Reilly, Steven DeCoster, and Blair Crownover.

After graduation, John joined the Air Force and was stationed in Japan. There he met Cleo Battle, the love of his life. They were married in 1959, and she predeceased him after 65 years together. After the military, John worked in Corning, N.Y., at the Corning Glass Co., where he advanced within the executive ranks to become president. John also joined his wife in mastering cooking, notably exotic Japanese dishes. He said in our 50th-reunion yearbook that he had embraced that avocation because “my lifemate made it abundantly clear that if we share a life, we share cooking.”

In addition to his wife, Cleo, he was predeceased by his twin brother and Princeton classmate, Richard Krecker ’55. John is survived by sons Gregory and Jeffrey; daughter Kimberly Ward; and four grandchildren.