John Henry Hastings

1921 - 2016

John Henry Hastings
Oct. 1, 1921 - Dec. 6, 2016
Monterey
John H. Hastings, 95, passed away peacefully at his home in Monterey on Tuesday, December 6, 2016. Born in Anaheim, California to Herbert H. Hastings and Sarah Delilah Johnson, John was preceded in death by his twin sister, Jeannette McConnell and younger brother, Herbert Hastings.
John served with distinction in Europe in World War II as an officer in the Army Air Corps and received the Bronze Star for meritorious service. Following the war, John completed his education at the University of California, Berkeley in 1947 and shortly thereafter began working for the California Division of Forestry (CalFire). John rose through the ranks and retired as a Deputy State Forester and Chief of Monterey District V in 1986.
John was a great supporter, Charter Member and Member Emeritus of the Monterey Bay Aquarium where he served as a docent for 18 years. John was also a past president of The Rohr Aircraft Toastmasters in Riverside, California; the Gentrain Society of Monterey Peninsula College; the Mountain Shadows Community Association and the Northern California Section of the Society of American Foresters. Throughout his career John was a member of many professional organizations and spoke and wrote about firefighting on numerous occasions.
John married his first wife, Marjorie Lucille Schubert of Los Angeles, California, in 1946. They had two children, Carolyn Marie Jones born in 1947 and John Hastings II in 1951. Marjorie passed away after a battle with cancer in 1982.
In 1987, John married Jeannette Lazan, his next door neighbor and a Minnesota refugee who had been a widow since 1965. He enjoyed the warm embrace of a new extended family and Jeannette's sons, Doug Lazan of Minnesota (deceased) and Gil Lazan of Connecticut along with several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
John and Jeannette loved living on the Monterey Peninsula and took great pleasure in its many cultural offerings, activities and beautiful scenery. They also enjoyed travel abroad and spending time with their blended families.
John enjoyed tennis and was a longtime player at the Carmel Valley Racquet Club (now CVAC).
John always took a keen interest in people and had a phenomenal memory for the events of their lives. He wholeheartedly embraced life and tackled any problem with a fierce determination and singular will. He was a champion of personal responsibility and community service. John had a warm heart, a generous spirit and a great love of people which was reciprocated by the large number of friends he made throughout his life.
John is survived by his beloved wife, Jeannette, his daughter Carolyn Jones and her husband Stephen Jones of Merced, their children, Brian and his wife, Sarah and their children; Cindy and Brad Kurtz of Indiana and their children; John's son, John II and his wife Jane and their children, John III and Savannah; stepson Gilbert Lazan and his wife Parcia Sansary of Connecticut and their children, Benjamin Brenson, Anamaria and two children in Chicago; Eric Brenson, Natalia and their three children in Connecticut; Juan José Brenson, Anamaria and one child also in Connecticut.
In lieu of flowers it is requested that donations in John's name be made to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Please visit www.thepaulmortuary.com for condolences and guest book.


View the online memorial for John Henry Hastings