John Raymond Laux was the beloved husband of R. Martha (Melendrez) Laux, father of John David Laux and Andrew Mark Laux, brother of Nora Faller, Cass Laux, and Rainy Laux, and son of A. Lorraine (Prus) Laux and Ignatius C. Laux (deceased) and mother- in-law, Frances Melendrez. John will be remembered as a deeply caring, gentle man who devoted himself to his family, friends, and children in his community. He was a man of faith, and had an infectious sense of fun. Highly intelligent, he was an excellent engineer who loved all things fast, including flying, sailing, and rockets.
Childhood
John was born May 2, 1955 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at Mercy Hospital, son of Ignatius “Nick” Laux and Lorraine Laux. Nick was from Carrick and Lorraine was from Baden, and John was their first child.
John grew up in Rosslyn Farms, Pennsylvania. He spent his childhood playing tennis, hockey, and skiing; building model planes and rockets; reading; and playing the trombone. He spent hours playing in the park and woods near his house with his siblings and friends. Many of these activities were the beginnings of lifelong passions, especially model rocket building, which led to his career in engineering.
Education
John attended Rosslyn Farms School, a four-room schoolhouse, from first through sixth grade. He then attended Mt. Gallitzin Academy, and graduated from Canevin High School in 1973. John graduated with a B.S. with distinction in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University in 1977.
Career
His first job was as a Plant Maintenance Engineer at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. in Detroit, Michigan. He next worked with his father at Ruthrauff, Inc. in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as an HVAC Project Engineer. In 1981, he moved to California and took a position at Armtech Criton, in Indio, California, commuting 150 miles to and from Venice Beach on the weekends. He next worked as a Facilities Project Engineer at Micom Systems Inc., before taking a position at Rockwell (now Teledyne) in December 1986.
At Rockwell, he held positions as Senior Facilities Project Engineer, Project Engineering Lead, and then Facilities Manager at the research center in Thousand Oaks, California, and semiconductor manufacturing labs and cleanrooms in Camarillo, California. He was recognized for his contributions many times, including a Team of the Year Award in 1995, Chairman’s Team Award in 1997, and Operations Excellence Person of the Year in 2001.
In 2010, John took a position at Baxter Corporation as a Senior Principal Engineer at a premier biopharmaceutical plant with 1,500 employees. Most recently, he received an opportunity with Jones Lang LaSalle, which also allowed him to work much closer to his home in Newbury Park.
Martha and the Boys
John met Martha in October 1986 through a social club, after seeing each other (but not speaking) at a party. In February 1987, he proposed to Martha, and they were married August 29, 1987at Saint Steven’s catholic church in Monterey Park, California. After a whirlwind romance, they were lovingly married for 29 years.
Johnny was born September 1, 1988, and Andy was born on September 15, 1989. He coached them and their teams in hockey, took them skiing and snowboarding, and introduced them to the guitar.
Personal Life
John loved music, playing trombone, bass, and guitar. He loved jazz fusion and progressive rock. He was called to share his music talents by playing the worship music at his church.
John loved flying and anything airplanes. He obtained his pilot’s license and liked to rent a Cessna and fly from Camarillo Airport. Pursuing a purer form of flying, in the summer of 2015 he started to pursue a soaring (sailplaning) license during vacation in Lake Tahoe (Minden Airport). In early 2016 he earned his soaring license at a small airport near Pear Blossom California. He also enjoyed sailing and obtained his sail boat certification in 2008. On occasion, he liked to rent a sail boat and sail around the Channel Islands in Ventura California.
John was a man of deep faith. He was a man that revered God and sought intimacy with Him. He was a man that put his faith into action, in other words put shoe leather onto his faith.
He led men’s group at the church, washed dishes at the Ventura County Mission and many other church volunteer organizations which activities included cleaning yards for the elderly and driving people in need of transportation. He also lent/gave money to those in need. John donated generously time and money to many organizations including Wings of Faith which flies to remote locations in the Western United States bringing clothing, toys and food to needy families, Samaritan’s Purse which provides disaster relief world-wide, American Center for Law and Justice (“ACLS") with a mandate to protect and advance religious and constitutional freedoms in the US , African orphanages, Cross International which provides aid to needy families around the world, mentored boys as a Big Brother in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles and many other Christian and non-Christian organizations.
John was a man of honor and integrity. He had an obvious nobility of soul and spirit. He lived and loved well, a very special human being. John was an organ donor which was his last act of kindness and caring.
John is deeply loved and missed by his family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and countless people whose lives he touched. Now he is gazing in the loving eyes of our Lord and Messiah , Jesus.
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