John Michael Cheval, 87, died on Tuesday, January 28th at St. Anthony's hospital, surrounded by family and friends. He is survived by his wife, Vicki; a son, Greg; two daughters, Diana and Lisa (Emad); two stepsons, Neil (Lori) and Kyle (Shauna); four grandchildren, Kelly, Madeline, Jason and Carrie; one sister, Marlene; and one sister-in-law Judy. He was preceded in death by his first wife Patricia; two brothers, Richard and Patrick; a sister, Rita; a nephew, Richard Joseph; his mother Eleanor and his father Herman.
Mr. Cheval was born on June 16, 1932 in Chicago, Illinois. He joined the Navy at age 19, and is a veteran of the Korean war. After military service, he returned to Chicago and earned an associates degree in electrical engineering at DeVry University. Thereafter he accepted a job at Raytheon as a technician, and then transferred with Raytheon to Massachusetts where he met his first wife Patricia and began a family. He transferred again with Raytheon to Colorado in 1974, and later accepted a sales opportunity with Scientific Atlanta. Using the principles espoused by Dale Carnegie, John found much success in sales, and served as Scientific Atlanta's regional representative, managing the sales of cable tv equipment to cable tv companies in the western region.
Soon after retirement, John lost his first wife Patricia. Several years later he met and fell in love with Vicki Anderson, and they celebrated a wedding in 2008.
John was a lifelong lover of games including chess and poker, and was an avid sports fan, especially of the Broncos. In his retirement, he enjoyed many pursuits with Vicki including dancing, live music, travel and theater, in addition to celebrating the numerous birthday and holiday celebrations of his near and extended family. He was a member of the Lakewood Elks lodge and a member of the DI-MU-DA dance club.
While John was impacted most of his life by the affects of Crohn's disease, and later by macular degeneration, his outlook on life always remained upbeat and positive. This is the reason that John was an inspirational figure to many, as he rarely complained about his ailments, and remained caring and concerned for all his friends and loved ones.
A public visitation for John will be held on Sunday, February 2 at 10 a.m. John's funeral service, burial and reception will be held Monday, February 3 starting at 10 a.m.
