Jack McGee

Jack McGee

1948 - 2021

Jack was born in Omaha, NE, the younger brother to two sisters, Pat and Jeanne. He grew up in the tiny village of Corning, CA. Building model airplanes as a boy, there were already hints of his love of flying. He attended UC Santa Barbara, where he met his eventual wife, Ruth. They married in Coeur D'Alene, ID, in 1975. He and Ruth had two daughters, Shasta and Whitney. They grew up camping, traveling, and suffering through dad jokes. Throughout the years, he has always been incredibly proud of them.

The family moved frequently to follow Jack's career, living in Florida, Michigan, and then, after being assigned to Chicago O'Hare, settling in Wisconsin. After flying freight of all kinds, Jack was hired at United Airlines in 1985. He retired after almost 20 years, but always said that the thing he missed most about flying was the view out the cockpit window. His joie de vivre led him to a number of hobbies: fishing, guns, drinking a good beer or whisky, martial arts, drumming, building models (airplanes, subs), and of course, dirty jokes.

Jack and Ruth divorced in 2007 and he moved to sunny Florida, right on the Gulf. He met Bonnie and they married in 2018. They bought a second house on a lake in Arkansas, perfect for freshwater fishing.

In December 2020, Jack caught COVID-19. He passed away on February 8, 2021, in Trinity, Florida, at the age of 72.

Jack is survived by his wife, Bonnie; daughters, Shasta (Nico) Marrero, and Whitney (Gavin) McGee; grandson, Jasper; ex-wife, Ruth; sisters, Patricia McGee Rardin, and Jeanne McGee (Mark Evers); and many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, tell a friend a joke.