John S. Margerison ’63

John died April 24, 2020, of a heart attack in his sleep in Traverse City, Mich., where he had a long career as an infotech administrator at hospitals. Healthy to the end, he had taken his usual walk that day.

Colleagues, friends, and classmates fondly remember John’s broad smile, kindliness, affability, and strong sense of ethics. Born in Philadelphia, he came to Princeton from Penn Charter School, majored in economics, caught for freshman baseball, wrestled junior varsity, ate at Cap & Gown, worked on Campus Fund Drive, and roomed with Fred Dimond and Tony Beard.

After college came the Army, information systems at IBM for 15 years in four states, then more than two decades at medical centers in Traverse City. John kept distance-running into his mid-70s, saying, “I’m just a guy who plods along and enjoys being able to finish a race,” and sometimes running half-marathons up to six times a year, always annually in Alaska while visiting his son.

John is survived by his wife of 44 years, Carol; son Drew; daughter Susan Moore; six grandchildren, who knew him as Poppy, Grandpa M or Grandpa Blah Blah; one great-granddaughter; and brother Dick. A son, Johnny, preceded him in death.