John Alexander Alexander

John Alexander Alexander 7/21/17-3/2/17 John Alexander Alexander, 99, inventor, engineer, builder and scientist, passed away peacefully in his home in Cayucos, California, March 3, 2017. He was surrounded by his wife Carol, family and friends. John was born in 1917 to John Alexander and Janet (Bush) Alexander in Cleveland Ohio. The Alexander family moved to California when John was seven. A born entrepreneur, at age 15, he hired out of work men to clean bricks at a penny apiece. From an early age, the outdoors appealed to John and he was an accomplished hunter and fisherman. He earned a civil engineering degree at U.C. Berkeley. At that time he was recruited to be one of the original officers in the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees) by their founder Ben Moreell. In 1942, John married Vara "Midge" Riggs before being deployed to the South Pacific and the Aleutian Islands during World War II. After the war, he returned to California where he started his family and his construction company, John A Alexander Construction. He went on to pioneer the technique of the tilt-up concrete construction, still widely used throughout the industry. In 1965, John moved his family to a ranch in Cayucos where he raised black angus cattle and started a successful abalone farm. John's wife, "Midge," passed away in 1985. Mr. Alexander was an outspoken environmentalist who spent years developing and implementing industrial water purification systems and was often sought after to speak and advise on the subject. It was through one of these talks that John met Carol Bonnette. Inseparable from this point on, they were married in 1993. Together they enjoyed hosting family and friends at their home and traveling the world. John is survived by his wife, Carol; his daughters, Patricia Alexander and Gaye Eck (Steve); his stepchildren, Tom Bonnette (Ofelia), Paul Bonnette (Karen) and Karen Naumu (Richard); his grandchildren, John Alexander Readick, Bonnie Eck and Nora Mason (Mike). John is also survived by nine grandchildren and five great-grand children; his sister Janet; and numerous relatives and friends. He is preceded in death by his first wife, Vara; his brother Robert; and his parents. A Celebration of John's Life will be held at 12:00 noon, Saturday, April 29, 2017, at Cayucos Community Church, located at 3rd and Ocean Ave. in Cayucos. A reception to follow. Sign his guestbook at sanluisobispo.com/obituaries