Mr. Jon W. Dawson

Jon Dawson was a man who understood the value of an education from a young age. He was the first generation American born citizen on his father's side of the family. His father George was an orphan from England. His mother Frankie was also an orphan. His parents worked hard to save money in order to give Jon a private Catholic education. His father had little formal education so Jon would come home from grade school and teach his father what he learned in school that day. Perhaps these early lessons are what drove Jon's passions as a teacher. In fact Jon is the first college graudate on either side of his family. Jon wore many hats over the years from athletic director, assistant director of admissions, defensive coordinator, track coach and teacher. During his career he coached at other schools before he began his tenure at Loyola High School. Once at Loyola he found his home. Nothing would ever come close to his fierce loyalty to his Cubs. Jon loved what he did for a living. He often said that working with kids kept him young. Jon loved teaching and coaching but the advantage of working at Loyola was that he went to work everyday and got paid to "hang out" with his friends. Jon was a fierce supporter of Loyola athletics and could often be found at a Loyola game regardless of the sport. Jon married his wife Sandy in 1970 and they had two children, Shannon and Curtis (Loyola class of 1996). They have spent the last 22 years living in Chino Hills. In recent years Jon and Sandy have spent their summers traveling and have been to Alaska, Ireland, gone to see many historical U.S. landmarks for Jon's history lectures and were most recently vacationing in Boston. While vacationing in Boston with Sandy, Jon suffered a brain aneurysm and died with his wife and children by his side. He is survived by his wife Sandy, son Curtis and his daughter in law Jenifer, daughter Shannon and son in law Jared, grandchildren Andrew (15), Nicholas (8) and Nathaniel (8) and his sister Frances. Jon was preceded in death by his father George, mother Frankie and sister Lona. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation to The Jon Dawson Memorial Scholarship at Loyola High School. Information regarding donations may be found at http://www.loyolahs.edu/podium/default.aspx?t=116799