John J. Ahern ’45

John J. Ahern ’45 passed away on December 22, 2018, in Delray Beach, Florida. He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Annette; sons John III, Phillip, and Paul and their spouses; five grandchildren; one great-grandson; and brother Walter. After a year at Dartmouth his education was interrupted by WW II, during which he served as an officer on a destroyer in the Atlantic. He then graduated from the University of Minnesota. John’s business career drew him into various industries and services as chairman, president, or owner of companies both domestic and abroad, with diverse banking, commercial, and charitable directorships along the way. John started in the hotel business and went on to work in movie theaters, package manufacturing, beauty salons, and retirement homes. When not operating businesses, John ventured into developing real estate and had recently served as president of Oklahoma Woodland Owners Association. John’s business connections brought knowledge and social pleasure through memberships in the Young Presidents Organization, World Presidents Organization, and Chief Executives Organization. John was an enthusiastic tennis player and avid skier on most of the world’s great mountains; he loved racing sailboats on Lake Minnetonka and snorkeling through the British Virgin Islands. John and Annette’s Florida home brought them many friends in the Delray Beach St. Andrews Club, the Palm Beach Circumnavigators Club and the Manalapan Yacht Club. He also cherished his friends in the Excelsior Rotary, the Ham ’n’ Eggs Breakfast Club, the Suburban Men’s Club, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon.