John was the oldest of four children, his sister, Sally survives him. His parents were Roger and Catharine Cleveland. From his father, he got his love of planting and growing things and from his mother he got his lifelong love of the Episcopal Church.
After graduating from Stonewall Jackson High School in Charleston in 1955, John attended and graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in geology. His first job was with Joe McCoy working in gas exploration in northern WV. In 1961 with the draft looming, John went to Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. After graduating, he went to Little Creek, Virginia and served on the USS Hermitage, LSD. He later served on the Admirals staff before completing his naval service.
After the navy, John began his 25-year career at IBM in White Plains, New York. In 1971, he moved to Atlanta, working in marketing in the finance division. His major customer was Trust Company Bank. He retired in 1996.
After his retirement, he was able to garden, play golf, go fishing and pursue his interests in finance and investing. 20 years ago he and his wife, bought a house in Sapphire Valley, NC. This has been a great joy to both of them.
John is survived by his wife, Martha (Wray). For their 60 years of marriage, John and Martha had a loving, devoted, and supportive partnership. They have two sons; John (Marni) and Grey, five grandchildren; Kellie, Everett, Luke, Gabe, and Max. John was very proud of his family and delighted in these five grandchildren.
The funeral will be on Tuesday, September 14th at 11am at Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, 805 Mt. Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Outreach program at Holy Innocents or to the Link Counseling Center.
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