John Wiley Steakley Jr.

John Wiley Steakley, Jr. was born in Fort Benning, Georgia to John W. Steakley, Sr. and Betty “Cindy” Steakley on November 3, 1961. He was the oldest of John and Cindy’s four sons. As an Army “brat” he lived with his family in New York, New Jersey, California and Hawaii before settling in Fort Myers, Florida in 1975, where he attended Cypress Lake High School and graduated in 1979.

John attended Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Government in 1983. During his sophomore year, he was an exchange student at Kansai Gaidai University in Japan. After graduating from Eckerd College, he received a Masters of International Management in International Finance and Asian Area Studies from Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale, Arizona in 1984.

He later returned to Fort Myers to begin a career in finance, working at Barnett Bank, C&S Bank and SunTrust Bank. He then became a Certified Financial Planner, working at Citi Smith Barney and American Capital Wealth Managers LLC before starting his own successful business, J Steakley Wealth Management, in 2012.

John met his wife, Charlene Imperatore Steakley, while attending St. Luke’s Episcopal Church after his family moved to Fort Myers in 1975, but they would not begin dating until 15 years later. They were engaged in October 1990 and married in June 1991. They had their first daughter, Kaitlyn, in 1992 and their second daughter, Michaela, was born in 1994.

He was actively involved in both of his daughters’ lives. He was a coach for their YMCA basketball teams and later became a USA Swimming Official for their swim meets. He was always proud of their accomplishments and supported all of their goals, from academics and sports to careers and hobbies.

He was a man of strong faith, and he and Charlene were active members of St. Luke’s. Over the years, John held a position on the Vestry, regularly served as a subdeacon and verger during Sunday services and on holidays, and attended Men’s Ministry meetings on Friday mornings.

He also believed that it is important for responsible business people to faithfully serve their community. He was a past-president of Pick Up the Ball, Inc. and the Rotary Club of Fort Myers-Sunrise, a long time Member of the United Way of Lee County Allocation Committee, and a Charter Member of the Fort Myers President’s Council of Hodges University. He also served as Chairman of the Board of the Lee County Chapter of the American Red Cross during the 2004-2005 hurricane seasons. John was also a Volunteer Child Advocate for the Lee County Guardian ad Litem program, through which he gave his time to advocate for the best interests of Florida’s abused, abandoned and neglected children.

John was an avid runner and triathlete. He was a runner for most of his life, and began competing in triathlons in 1994. He was a member of the Speedsters running club, ran several marathons as well as shorter races over the years and completed Ironman Italy in September 2019, an accomplishment that he trained tirelessly for and was immensely proud of. His other hobbies included surfing, traveling, visiting wineries and attending football games for the University of Florida Gators, North Carolina State University Wolfpack and the Las Vegas (Oakland) Raiders.

He is survived by his wife, Charlene; his daughters, Kaitlyn and Michaela; his brothers, Mark (Susannah); Matthew (Jennifer) and Michael; brothers-in-law Johnny and James; sister-in-law Beth; nieces Hillary (Scott) and Alison (PJ); nephews Quintin (Cheyenne) and Shawn; and numerous great-nieces and great-nephews.

A memorial service, followed by a reception, will be held on Saturday, November 20, 2021 at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 2635 Cleveland Avenue, Fort Myers, Florida at 2:00 PM.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to one of the following organizations that were near and dear to John’s heart:

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church: 2635 Cleveland Ave. Fort Myers, Florida 33901

Pickup the Ball: https://www.pickuptheball.org/

Guardian ad Litem - 20th Judicial Circuit: https://voicesforkids.org/ways-to-give/