John H. Summers

1939 - 2024

John "Jack" H. Summers (84) was born in Wheeling, West Virginia on October 12, 1939, to Eleanor Fulton and Earl Summers. Jack passed away on April 17, 2024. He attended high school in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Following graduation, Jack enlisted in the U.S. Navy which eventually resulted in him being sent to Officer Candidate School. During the Vietnam Conflict, he proudly served as an officer aboard the USS John King, which was a Charles F. Adams-class Guided Missile Destroyer with a crew of 24 officers and 330 enlisted. Back stateside, amongst numerous postings, Jack served directly under Admiral H. G. Rickover (who was nicknamed the Father of the Nuclear Navy). He retired from the Navy in 1985 with the rank of Commander. During his time in the military, he took advantage of the military benefit system by attending and graduating from The Ohio State University, where amongst other activities he tutored future Cleveland Browns and National Football League Hall of Famer Paul Warfield. Also during his military career, Jack led the team that wrote the Federal Acquisition Regulation (F.A.R.) which standardized procurement procedures for the acquisition of supplies and services for numerous governmental agencies. After retiring as a career officer from the military and with his expertise in F.A.R. and all its intricate technicalities, Jack entered the private world of government contracting, where he was highly regarded. He then retired from this second career, after many years of professional success.
Jack was known to be generous, kind, loyal, astute, and very humorous. He loved literature and also singing in the St. Alban Episcopal Choir of Annandale (Virginia) and St. Peters Episcopal Choir of Savannah (Georgia) as well as other choral societies which took him to many far-flung performing venues such as Austria and other European countries. Jack's passions included Ohio State and Washington Redskins/Commanders football, and most of all his family and sitting around the table laughing during Sunday dinner.
Jack is survived by his wife of 36 years, Kathy; his daughter Julie and son-in-law Chuck, his son Brian, daughter-in-law, Catharine; and grandchildren Kennedy, Joseph, and Christian; as well as daughter Caroline, son-in-law Joe, and grandchildren Eleanor and Jack. His brothers Al Fulton, Rick Summers, and Mark Summers also survive him.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on May 8, 2024, at St. Alban's Episcopal Church in Annandale, Virginia. As the church does not accept flowers, the family kindly requests for donations to be made to your local Animal Humane Society or St. Alban's Episcopal Church of Annandale, Virginia.