Dec. 14, 1929 – March 8, 2014

A wonderland of a human being

My stepfather’s name was John “Jack” G. Beechler. He was born to a life of little promise, the deck clearly stacked against him.

John was my mother’s love for 25 years of their lives. The best he had was always the gifts he gave.

John all but gave his life fighting in the Korean War. In April of 1953, he was awarded the Purple Heart and a silver star for his gallantry during his time defending Outpost Harry.

Along with the bragging rights of fatherhood to his daughter, Leslie, he would equally like to be remembered as the soldier and patriot of the country he so loved. In other ways, this man was definitely a dichotomy.

As a practical citizen and man of war he would support the government in small ways, such as buying us stamps as side gifts or stocking stuffers. At the same time, John would scoff at the losing businesses that government continued to support.

My stepfather was definitely an entrepreneur.

He was blessed with a keen sense of understanding opportunities and grabbed them the moment they appeared, which made him a lot of money. However, as soon as the cash was counted, he was busy making plans to spend it on his family and friends. We were his guests on family trips, elegant dinners and elaborate gifts.

John did re-invest in the stock market and coins (his great love), yet he was partnered with my mother, Judy, who was an extreme fiscal conservative. (Hmm… maybe that was the balance!) Last, but not least, this man was extremely wellread but I never saw him carry a book because he had it all in his head.

What was consistent about my stepfather was his devotion to his family, his generosity to mankind, his uncommon self-assuredness, his entrepreneurial spirit and his dedication to his country.

You see, he was never just my stepfather. John was a wonderland of a human being. I miss him every day.

But every day that I have a memory of John it’s accompanied by an emotion, which is just one more gift my stepfather has laid at my heart. We were so lucky.

Thank you, Mom, for the care you bestowed upon John when he, for once, really needed someone. You were always his soldier, never leaving his side. – Ellie Squire, step-daughter