Pensacola - John Vincent Myslak Jr. — a loving father, devoted husband and generous friend — died Sunday from an aggressive form of cancer. He was 54. John loved his family, his work and the Pensacola community.
He was born on June 17, 1965 in Granite City, Ill., to parents Dorothy and John V. Myslak Sr. He attended Southeast Missouri State University and met lifelong friends at Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity. He met his wife, Louise Myslak in Houston, where they married and welcomed their first son, William Lawton Myslak.
The family moved to Pensacola in 2000, where son John Louis Myslak and daughter Lillian Genevieve Myslak were born, completing John and Louise's wonderful family.
He was grateful for the opportunity to work with Dawson Company, and with Studer Properties. He was instrumental in the building of Maritime Place office building, the Southtowne office building and Southtowne apartment and retail complex — three buildings that have been key pieces of downtown Pensacola's renaissance.
He was committed to the value of community service, and he lived his life as an example of its power. He served with the Port of Pensacola study committee, and the Mayor's Urban Redevelopment Advisory Committee as part of his belief in community building.
This lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan kept alive his love of baseball through advocacy work in Pensacola with Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI), an outreach project of Major League Baseball. RBI works to ensure that young people from underserved communities have a connection to baseball, something John was passionate about as well.
He was a living example of humility, anonymously serving as a mentor in the recovery community to countless people over the last decade, eschewing any personal recognition.
John's greatest love and enduring accomplishment is his family.
He is survived by his wife, Louise; his sons, Will and Jack, and his daughter, Lilly; his parents, John and Dottie; and a host of friends and colleagues.
Louise, Will, Jack and Lilly are deeply grateful to the people at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Sacred Heart Hospital and Covenant Care for their compassionate and tireless efforts on John's behalf.
A private graveside service is planned. Public services will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 3, at First United Methodist Church, with a reception to follow immediately at the Studer Community Institute building, 220 W. Garden St. In lieu of flowers, donations to the American Cancer Society in John's honor are welcome.
He will be well-remembered and dearly missed by every life he touched.
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