JACK H. MCGARVEY

Jack H. McGarvey passed away on July 15, 2017, at the age of 80 years, in his beloved home in Rio Rico, AZ.

Jack was born in Clearfield, PA, the youngest of six children of Violet Richards and Paul McGarvey. He attended Nyack College, Clarion State College, and the University of Connecticut, obtaining a graduate degree in education. A prolific writer, Jack published hundreds of articles about education, child development, computers, gardening, and travel.

As a middle school English teacher, he was instrumental in the formation of the Junior High/Middle School Assembly within the National Council of Teachers of English and authored that group's position statement that led to its acceptance in professional teaching organizations. Jack also pushed to integrate technology into the creative writing process, which was something new at the time.

After retiring, he moved to southern Arizona. He taught himself Spanish, traveled to Mexico often, and continued to publish articles, particularly about border issues. Throughout his retirement, Jack devoted many resources to helping Mexican and Central American migrants.

Jack is survived by his daughter, Gillian McGarvey, son-in-law, Stephan Markowski, and two grandchildren, Ruby Markowski and Roman McGarvey, of Bristol, VT; and his siblings Marilyn Selfridge and Gerry McGarvey.

Donations in memory of Jack can be made to the Green Valley Samaritans, The Good Shepherd United Church of Christ, 17750 S. La Canada, Sahuarita, AZ 85629 (please write "Samaritan Fund" on the notation line).



This obituary was originally published in the Green Valley News & Sun.