Jack Eugene Short

XENIA Jack Eugene Short, 80, passed away peacefully Saturday, October 19. He was born July 25, 1933 in Wauseon, Ohio to Jay Emery and Melissa Helene (Bechstein) Short. He married Mary Carol Creswell on June 23, 1956. He attended elementary school and high school in Delta, Ohio where he excelled in both basketball and football. He also attained the rank of Eagle Scout during this time. Jack graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1955 where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He played on the undefeated 1953-54 football team that won the Ohio Conference, a record matched just once in the college's history. Jack received his juris doctorate degree from Western Reserve Law School (now Case Western University) and became a member of the Ohio Bar in 1958. He began his law career in Kent, Ohio.

In 1961, Jack and family moved to Xenia where he became president of the Kelly-Creswell Company, a position he held for 33 years. He was a charter member of the Xenia Area Development Corp. and served for several years as a member of the board. He was also a past board,, member of the former Citizens National Bank and the Xenia YMCA. For several football seasons in the mid to late 1970s, Jack was the "Voice of the Xenia Buccaneers" on radio station WGIC. Jack was an avid fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes, and he sponsored an athletic scholarship for the football program. He was a member of the Faith Community United Methodist Church for many years. In later years, Jack and Mary Carol spent summers sailing his sloop 'At Last' on Lake Erie where he reached his goal of sailing in all five Great Lakes. He snow skied with his family in Colorado at Christmas time and wintered in Bonita Springs, Fla. He made pockets of friends wherever he lived and traveled and kept them close throughout his life. His favorite times were skiing with his four children, their spouses and his 10 grandchildren. Jack will be missed by all who loved and knew him.

Jack is survived by his wife and four children: Thomas Creswell Short and his wife, Emina of Cincinnati; Mary Melissa deCordova and her husband, Noel of Norwich, New York; Sally Ann Davis and her husband Timothy of Houston; and Heather Lynn McDonnell and her husband Mark of Glen Cove, New York. He is also survived by his sister, Sally (Short) Brackevelt; sister-in-law, Ann (Creswell) Sandin; cousins Clark Waite and Martha Joy Waite; ten grandchildren: Alexandra and Helene Short; Noel and Lane deCordova; Audrey, Charlotte and Jacqueline Davis; and Reed, Claire and Jeffrey McDonnell; as well as many nieces and nephews. The family would also like to acknowledge Robin Suber who cared for Jack for the past year and a half. A memorial service will be held to celebrate Jack's life at 10:30 a.m. Thursday , Oct. 24, 2013 at Faith Community United Methodist Church, 100 Country Club Dr., Xenia.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Millennium House of SW Florida, Inc., 8951 Bonita Beach Road, Suite 297, Bonita Springs, Florida 34135, Hospice of Dayton 324 Wilmington Ave. Dayton, Ohio 45420 or The Alzheimer's Association 3797 Summit Glen Drive Suite G100 Dayton, Ohio 45449.

Arrangements have been entrusted to McColaugh Funeral Home, 826 N. Detroit Street, Xenia.Online condolences may be expressed to the family at www.mccolaughfuneralhome.com.