John Francis Quinn

The PGA estimates the odds of a hole-in-one are around 12,500 to one. Fittingly, John had two.

Because across his life, John had a knack for—and an unbending will—to defy the odds.

Growing up in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, John was the son of Susanna and Ted Quinn, a WW2 Naval vet and boxing champ. Ted and Sue instilled blue collar values of hard work and tenacity, and their tiny home—stuffed with John’s four sisters and his one brother—was always filled with love and support. To be a Quinn meant to work hard, treat people well, and laugh your ass off along the way.

Early in life, John got to work. Before graduating high school, he was a paperboy, a short order cook, worked construction, and caddied at Merion Golf Club, which ignited his love of golf. He took classes at Pierce College and University of Pennsylvania to give him a foundation in accounting and finance, while finding time for notoriously raucous trips with friends to Florida, several European backpacking adventures, attendance at Woodstock, and even spent two years working in Australia, where he and his first wife, Katie McTear Quinn, watched the Sydney Opera House rise during its construction in the early 1970s.

They returned to the States and had their two children, Sean and Brendan, eventually moving to the San Francisco Bay Area, where John entered the grocery business. John was always both curious and ambitious, so he dove deep into all aspects of the business, eventually hoping to purchase his own stores.

After a journey from Palo Alto to Southern California, John and his second wife Pat formed PAQ Inc. and bought three Food4Less stores in Stockton, California in 1995, but they were just getting started.

PAQ acquired more Food4Less stores around the Central Valley and then launched one of John’s proudest store concepts, Rancho San Miguel. Always restless and loving a nice beach, John then negotiated an acquisition in Hawaii, buying 12 Times Supermarket stores.

The working class Irish Catholic kid from the Philly suburbs certainly defied the odds to help build a grocery company spanning California and Hawaii. But John’s leadership was not focused on power or untethered growth. He loved negotiating but felt that the only good deals were ones where both sides walked away happy. And he always pushed his team to take chances and not be discouraged by mistakes.

John’s generosity was legendary, both quietly and publicly, and John was named Stocktonian of the Year in 2010. However, just months after the memorable ceremony, John’s life was forever changed after he suffered a massive stroke in 2011.

Odds of survival were low, but John persevered, with hospital staff calling him the “Miracle Man” after major cranial surgery. John emerged partially paralyzed but fully committed to recovery. He was able to transition away from PAQ because he had built a leadership team who he mentored and trusted, and he was incredibly proud to convert PAQ into a 100% employee-owned company, which enriched the lives of hundreds.

John worked relentlessly on his recovery—always telling people that he “had to see the grandkids grow up.” His grandchildren—Molly (18), Brady (17), Evan (15), and Seamus (14)—enjoyed every moment with their Grandpop, who could pull off a spot-on Donald Duck impression one moment and instill profound lifelong lessons of tenacity and perseverance the next.

John was multi-faceted like that. He was amazing with kids but was always the adult in any situation. He could be deadly serious but was usually the funniest person in the room. He was the working class kid who became the wine connoisseur. He could be impatient in the moment but always saw the longterm big picture. He was wise and a wise-ass. He could be impossibly stubborn but was legendarily generous.

He was a true Irish character and his legacy will live on.

John was preceded in death by his wife Patricia Anne Quinn (2022) and brother Theodore Quinn (1999), and is survived by his sons Sean (Kimberly) Quinn and Brendan (Tracey) Quinn, as well as his sisters Stacy (Michael) Schafer, Susanna (Jerry) Samaniego, Theresa Quinn, and Margaret (Robert) Dwyer.