John Watson Hewitt

John Watson Hewitt Jr. was born on July 24, 1954 to John W. Hewitt Sr. and Irene Ennis in Brooklyn, NY. His father was a NYC transit train operator and his mother was a punch card operator. At an early age, he was fascinated with art, given that his mother also had talent, so this inspired him to draw. He was a very bright child as well, so he ended up going to prestigious Brooklyn Technical High School and graduated with honors. Still wanting to pursue an art career, he entered Pratt Institute, but along the way, life's path changed and brought him to the doorstep of The United States Merchant Marine Academy located in Kings Point, New York. From there, his whole world opened up to engineering, keeping the ships he worked on running nice and smooth. Sadly, his mother will never see him graduate as when John reached the age of 19, she had passed away at the tender age of 37. After graduation, he ended up traveling the world, never looking back. Seafaring became an enormous part of who he was. And so, for 44 years, John had built himself up a nice career and had retired at the rank of Chief Engineer. In between these years, he still never lost his love for art, even studying advertising in The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale in 1994 after he had moved to Florida in 1991. Even so, his life was tied to the sea, and ultimately, this was his calling. With coming out of retirement to help with Hurricane Ida, he tragically lost his life doing what he loved, to help civilians with honor. John Hewitt was a fantastic friend, son, brother, and uncle with the sweetest smile, the quirkiest sense of humor, and the most infectious guttural laugh anyone could muster. With one less wonderful human being in this world, he will be sorely missed by all the hearts he has touched. Rest in paradise.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.WestsideLeitzEagan.com for the Hewitt family.