John Joseph Macionis

John Joseph Macionis Olympian and World Champion Swimmer John Joseph Macionis, a national swimming star, passed away peacefully on February 16, 2012 at the age of ninety-five. He lived in Elkins Park, Wyncote and, since 2007, at The Colannades in Charlottesville, Virginia. Born in Philadelphia on May 27, 1916 to Daniel and Lillian Macionis, he sold newspapers on a center-city street corner earning money to pay admission to the Germantown YMCA, where he learned to love swimming. He captained the swimming team at Central High School, and in 1933 he set a national record in the 220 yard freestyle. The following year, at Mercersburg Academy, he set two national freestyle records. At Yale University, he held every freestyle record and, in 1936, became the first Yale swimmer to compete in the Olympic Games, where he won a silver medal. In Masters swimming competition, he set several national records for his age group. He served local schools as a swimming official for more than fifty years and is a member of the Pennsylvania Swimming Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. Macionis was vice president of sales for Shearer's Dairies and also for Chestnut Hill Dairy. He served as a director of Philadelphia's Metropolitan Hospital. Over many years, he mentored dozens of young men in athletics and preparing them for college. Macionis is survived by his wife of sixty-nine years, May Johnston Macionis, his sons John Johnston Macionis (Amy) of Mount Vernon, Ohio and Hague, New York, and Robert Gordon Macionis (Patricia) of Charlottesville, Virginia, four grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter. Donations to honor his memory can be made to the Lake George Land Conservancy, P.O. Box 1250, Bolton Landing, New York 12814 (www.lglc.org)