John Albert Adams Jr., 88, U.S. Army Veteran

Born December 31, 1924 in Munhall, Pennsylvania, he resided in Lorain since is childhood, when his father John Albert Adams Sr. moved the family to Lorain and began working at National Tube.

He was preceded in death by his parents, John and Susan (nee Banyas) Adams, sisters Lorraine Neal, Agnes Vargo, Pauline Adams, and brother Robert Adams Sr. He is survived by his beloved wife of 61 years Ida Mae (nee Buchanan); sons John Adams III of St. Louis, Missouri, Jeff Adams (Annette) of Sarasota, Florida, James Adams of Lakewood; granddaughter Lauren of Sarasota, Florida; sisters Johanna Waitt (Walter III) and Beverly Ockajik, both of Amherst, and Jane Prunner of Las Vegas, Nevada.

A graduate of Lorain High School Class of 1942B, Jack served with the United States Army during WWII in the Fighting 69th and rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant in the 724thField Artillery Battalion. He was a lifelong member of the Lorain Amvets Post 47.

Following the war, he worked as the service manager for Gary Motors. Jack left Gary Motors to open a Marathon service station at the corner of Arizona Avenue and East Erie Avenue. Following a brief stint as the store manager of Scutt’s Auto Parts, he went on to receive his Teaching Certificate from the Kent State University College of Education and became the automotive vocational arts teacher at Lorain Admiral King High School in 1965 until the time of his retirement in 1984. While at Admiral King, he was also the Athletic Department Faculty Manager for many years.

As a middle school student, he was an avid builder of model airplanes, a passion that fed his interest in trouble-shooting problems with automobiles, particularly engines and the electrical system. He had a knack for quickly and accurately diagnosing an engine problem just by opening the hood of a car and listening to the running engine. As a young man, he was an outstanding athlete in the baseball, basketball and football city leagues of Lorain. During the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s he was an avid bowler, softball player, and golfer. He continued his love for golf as a member of the Oak Hill’s country club and played in the Amvets League at the Vermillion country club. He spent much of his retirement years on the links until he was in his mid 80’s.

One of Jack's greatest joys was sitting during the summer with his wife Ida on the covered and screened patio that he himself had designed and built.

Visitation will be Tuesday from 3 to 7 p.m. in the Gluvna-Shimo-Hromada Funeral Chapel, 3224 Broadway Avenue,. Lorain. Friends may also call Wednesday morning in St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, 1305 East Erie Avenue from 9:30 a.m. until the time of a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. Reverend Richard Hudak, pastor of St. Anthony Parish will officiate. Burial will follow in St. Joseph Cemetery, Amherst where military honors will be conducted by the Department of the Army assisted by members of Louis Paul Proy Chapter # 20 of the Disabled American Veterans.

Donations are encouraged to either St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, 1305 Eat Erie Avenue, Lorain, OH 44052 or to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, . 733 Third Ave, Suite 510, New York, NY 10017