John Stuart Bresee

1966 - 2019

John Stuart Bresee

February 21, 1966 - June 29, 2019 - John Stuart Bresee passed away unexpectedly in Utah, on June 29, 2019. He was a highly successful serial entrepreneur, and his professional accomplishments included roles as co-founder of the leading outdoor retailer, BackCountry.com, and director of e-commerce for Cellmania, a leader in mobile commerce funded by Motorola. John was also a writer and editor, founder of the Utah-based newspaper, The Wasatch Canyon Reporter, and managing editor for Powder Magazine. His work was published in Newsweek, Skiing, Outside Magazine, and Gravity.

John was raised in Vermont and moved to Park City, Utah, after graduation from college. He leaves behind many friends in both Vermont and Utah. John was an avid skier and, on assignment for Powder Magazine, skied all over the world. He loved riding his motocross bike, and, the day before he passed, rode 180 miles in the Utah desert, an adventure he shared to several friends about how happy he was to be riding again.

John's proudest accomplishments are his two children—Thomas Pendleton "Penn" Bresee (13) and Lucy Lhotse Alair Sachs (3). John's love and pride for their accomplishments and his fear of their suffering infused his life with meaning. Their futures are his enduring legacy.

In addition to Penn and Lucy, John is survived by his former wife and Penn's mother, Sara Bresee-Morgan, Jennifer S. Sachs, Lucy's mother, his own mother, Margaret "Peggy" Bresee; his siblings: Margaret Allen Mireles (Jesse), William J. Bresee (Susan), James R. Bresee, Jr. (Kathy), and Laura S. Hill (Jeff); and his nephews and nieces, Gabriel Mireles (Afra Kahn), Alex Mireles, James Bresee III (Amy), Brian Bresee, and Christopher Bresee, William S. Bresee, Charlotte D. Bresee, Julia S. Bresee, Violet S. Hill, and Caroline G. Hill; and uncles, Harrison Pendleton Bresee (Suzie), Spencer Bloch (Leslie), and cousins, Bridget Bryant (Arthur), Harrison Bresee (Rebecca), and George Bloch (Siham). John was predeceased by his father, James Robinson Bresee.

Services in John's honor will be held on July 13th at 5:00 PM at 1409 Little Kate Road Park City UT 84060. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to Utah Open Lands: https://utahopenlands.org/