Obituary of John William Charles Lacey

John William Charles Lacey was born in Northumberland Heath, Kent England on May 1st, 1930, the only child of Florence and William Lacey. John graduated top of his class and was awarded a scholarship to Oxford University, attending Keble College, where he studied mathematics and physics.

Not long before the end of WWII, John met his wife of 69 years, Edna Winifred Burns, on the dance floor at the British Legion Hall in Belvedere, Kent. The pair entered and won many dance competitions both together and in formation. It was a marriage made in heaven; together they reached for the stars and got to the moon. John leaves behind his bride, Edna, their children Jonathan, and Erika, as well as 3 grandchildren, Katie, Alex, and Justin and 3 great grandchildren, Isabella, James, and Carter.

John served in the British Royal Navy from April 1948 until September 1949 and subsequently was employed by the Royal Naval Scientific Service from June 1951 until October 1960 following his graduation from Oxford University.

John and Edna came to the USA in October 1960 through John’s position as a liaison officer for the British government where he was involved with applying the very beginning of computer technology to encoding and decryption. During his assignment John was recruited by Control Data Corporation in the mid-1960s where he began a long career that featured many roles. He worked his way up to the role of Senior Vice President of Corporate Plans and Controls, and by April of 1977 he was named President of the newly established Control Data Education Company and led their PLATO initiative and the Control Data Institute. John was renowned for his intellect, was well liked, and respected for his insights. His longtime boss, President of Control Data Bill Norris, once said of John’s strategic vision, “If John told me to jump off a building, I’d do it.”

Following his retirement from Control Data in 1985, John served on the boards of a number of well-known local companies and organizations, including, Graco Inc. and the Guthrie Theatre.

John is already greatly missed by all that knew him.

Due to COVID-19 there will only be a private family gathering to celebrate John’s life.