In Memoriam

John K. "Jack" Irwin 

IRWIN, JOHN K.

known to his friends as Jack, passed away peacefully on Monday evening, November 23, 2015, in Newport Hospital, with his wife. Karyne Wilner, at his side. Since 1995. Jack owned and operated Forest Park Mobile Homes and the Redwood Management  Company.

Born on February 5, 1942 in Pittsburgh, PA, he was the son of the late John K. and Jeannette Irwin.

Jack  graduated  from Langley High School in Pittsburgh, PA in 1959 and from Yale University, with a degree in economics, class of 1963, a member of Davenport College. He served in the US Army Reserves as a First Lieutenant, Field Artillery, receiving an honorable discharge in 1975. Prior to owning Forest Park Mobile Homes, Jack worked for McMichael Yacht Brokers Limited In Mamaroneck, NY, as a consultant to the banking industry in New York City, and in corporate management and real estate in Boston MA and Newport, RI.

.Jack's  numerous hobbies included sailing, photography, reading, and contract bridge. He enjoyed auto racing in Seekonk, baseball in Pawtucket, and was an avid fan of Nascar and the Boston Celtics. In the past he was a member of the Ame1ican Contract Bridge League and Race Committee Chair of the Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Recently he hosted an exchange student from China for her junior year, Jiarning Li, who attended Portsmouth High School.

Jack generously contributed to Waterfire in Providence and to The Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra. He was a member of First Unitarian Church of Providence and active in the church's small group ministry program.

He is survived by his loving wife Karyne and his daughter Nicole. both who are grateful to have had an opportunity to experience his kindness, love, loyalty, and wisdom. He leaves his brother Jim Irwin of Canandaigua, New York and his sister Janice Wagner of Wadsworth, Ohio. The uncle of Steve, Linda, Joyce, and Rusty, and great uncle of Jenny and JJ, he enjoyed sharing with them at many family get­togethers.  A devoted husband, father, son, brother, and uncle, he will be missed by all including the family dogs, Kerri and Micah.

Jack's large group of friends and colleagues are spread out geographically, but he has kept close ties with them from childhood through adulthood. Relationships with people from high school, college, and the business community have added color and beauty to his life.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Rhode Island Philharmonic, 667 Watennan Ave, East Providence, Rl  02914 or to Waterfire Providence, 101 Regent Ave. #2, Providence, RI, 02909. A celebration of Jack's life will be held in the spring when the days get longer and brighter and the boating season begins.

 

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from Doug Jenner,

     Jack was my freshman year roommate, and was the very first person I met when I arrived at Farnam Hall on the Old Campus in the fall of 1959. This tall kid with a flat-top haircut from Pittsburgh looked like he could have just stepped off the set of American Bandstand. It was easy to become friends with Jack, and lots of us did, because he treated everybody well, was not intimidated or overly impressed by anyone,  usually  had something smart or funny (or both) to add to any interaction, and had a wide range of interests.

         Jack's friends included scientific types like Kirby Klump, Aaron Bloch, and Steve Wilson, brilliant intellects like Harry Silverstein and Fred Thiel, ultimate prepsters like Ridge Hall and Jerry Bogert,  business and economic stars like Pepper Stuessy, Doug Wickham, and Jim Rogers, athletes like Hank Hallas and Erik Jensen, and a whole bunch of people I couldn't categorize except as great guys and good friends -- Nichols, Laing, Milikowsky, Throop, Jeter, Ross  (nobody used anyone else's first name in those days).

         By the end of freshman year  a diverse group  had come together who moved to Davenport College the next fall, and we quickly found additional terrific friends there. Once at Davenport, we put lots of energy into creative ways to have fun, with Jack often in the lead.  I remember bridge, late-night pool, endless Frisbee, football weekends, and late-night coffee at the Yankee Doodle. Jack was a lot more of a student than he usually let on, but if you were up late enough at night that became clear.

           After Yale, I  kept up but didn't see Jack for many years, until he and Karyne and Nicole came to Colorado for a visit about 5 years ago. We had a chance to introduce them to our mountain community of Evergreen and to catch up over a leisurely lunch at our favorite lakeside restaurant, and  the years melted away almost instantly. Jack, the essential bachelor for so many years, was extraordinarily pleased and proud to have a family at that stage of his life, and clearly it added a great deal of meaning to his life, We also had an enjoyable connection at our 50th reunion, and sadly that was the last time I saw him.

 

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from Fritz Thiel,

      Jack Irwin and I lived in the same entrance in Davenport and began a friendship which only ended with his recent death.  We were two different personalities, and yet personalities which augmented each other very well.  Jack was a very good-looking young man , slender and with carefully combed hair.  He easily interacted with other people. 

During a psychology course in our senior year, I was required to perform an extensive study of an individual.  I chose Jack as my subject.  To a large extent, he accepted my judgments, but in some cases not.  Nothing however led to serious controversy or arguments, and we both found it quite engaging.

 The obituary tells of the four different business activities Jack was engaged in during his life.  Unlike a lawyer, doctor or professional executive, his career allowed him to move back and forth between unrelated fields.  I was particularly fascinated to hear of his efforts and ability to sell expensive yachts.  Then, at our fiftieth reunion, he shared something most impressive with me.  I asked him how he had become the owner of Forest Park Mobil Homes, a mobile-home rental park.  He said:  “After years of moving from one business area to another and always being responsible for reports to a manager, I finally realized that I would much prefer to be my own boss.  And giving this thought, I decided that a mobile-home rental park would be just fine.  Yes, my workers and I have to constantly deal with standard recurring problems: plumbing, broken fences, damage one person has done to another’s property, and so on.  But we just deal with it.  And owning the rental park allows me to earn enough to live decently and be fully independent.”

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from Terry Throop,

Jack and I first knew each other from shared road trips to and from Pittsburgh in our early years at Yale. 

We got to know each other well in recreational pursuits.  We shared many nights playing bridge at Davenport; living in the same entry Junior and Senior years led to many opportunities to do other things together as well.

Jack and I lost touch after Yale.  I was surprised to run into him in the only gourmet grocery store in Newport, RI in the early 80s.  We reconnected easily and spent quite a bit of time together, during what I now know was a very stressful period before Jack began his most satisfying and rewarding years.

We introduced the “Standard Davenport” bidding system to the duplicate bridge tables in Newport.  We didn’t always win, but we had fun and got the attention of others for our unique approach to the game.

We also crewed together in Beer Can races on my boss’s sailboat in Narragansett Bay.  Jack was a fierce competitor, always wanting to go a little harder or a little closer. 

This is the period when Newport had just lost its place as the home of the America’s Cup races. Although we were both members of the Ida Lewis Yacht Club at that time, I don’t think we ever raced together there.  It was probably his fierce drive to excel and his ability as a sailor that led him to be selected as the Race Committee Chair at Ida Lewis.

I moved from Newport in 1987.  Jack had labored for years to make a small, struggling real estate operation successful.  He had accomplished that, but continued disagreements with the owners left him unsatisfied.

I was surprised to learn years later that he had found his niche as the “mayor, sheriff and tax collector” of a mobile home park near Newport that he bought. 

 Then Karyne and he got together and his life was fulfilled.  I regret that I didn’t meet Karyne until our 50^th reunion, and our time together there was too short.

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from Hank Hallas,

 Jack and I entered the class of 1963 with "Great Expectations" in the fall of 1959. After the football season of 1962 Jack and I became thick as thieves in Davenport. Jack became a fifth roommate or so it seemed. He and I knew we had succeeded the Yale part of our life and such a big part it was in those days. We had the grades, we had the discipline to succeed and the goal line was within sight! But the thing I think we both shared at that special moment is that we were clueless about the next chapter. We knew we had bagged the degree but what the hell were we going to do with it? So we drifted through those final months, very lost little sheep as the song goes.

We shared an interest in the same music, cynical reflections, smart ass remarks, occasional drinks, late night racquet ball and on and on. I did have a plan or so I thought, get married, go to law school and make a zillion dollars. Life dealt a different hand. I occasionally would query Jack about finding the right girl and getting married. But as his friends mention he was the essential bachelor. 

 I saw Jack only a few times after Yale before our 50th. He was a hoot and always seemed on top of his game but still the essential bachelor. The last time I saw him before the 50th was on the Cape at an Ed Smick gathering of 63' Davenporters. He hadn't changed and he was a  delight. When the 1963 50th Class Reunion book came out I was thrilled to read his entry. He and his wife would be coming. He and his lovely wife were among the many highlights of that glorious reunion. He and his wife and adopted daughter had visited Yale and decided to come. I am sure he was very proud to show his University to his family as we all are. I was personally very happy for him and how things worked out. We both weren't so sure back in the spring of 1963. 

 I miss him every day.

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