John W Morey died peacefully on July 4th, just three days shy of his 87th birthday. What a life he lived!

John’s mild-mannered nature, humor, sharp wit, trademark sarcasm, and direct-but-always-compassionate approach made him deeply loved and admired by everyone who knew him. He had a way of making people laugh, keeping them on their toes, and taking an interest in what was going on in their lives.

John came from humble beginnings. As an only child, he lived in a single room in his grandmother’s basement in Minneapolis with his parents. During one chapter of his childhood, the family even traveled to California to work as cherry pickers, teaching him early the value of hard work and perseverance.

A proud graduate of South High, John remained close with many of his classmates well into his 80s, valuing friendships that lasted a lifetime.

His greatest stroke of luck happened on a double date where both he and Diane arrived with other people. John’s humor and charm were hard for Diane to resist, so she told him to ask her out. He wrote her phone number in the dust on top of his refrigerator, only to have someone erase it. Eventually he tracked her down, and they were engaged in three months and married after six, beginning a partnership that lasted 61 years. Their marriage was built on love and laughter.

John loved playing games and had weekly standing game nights with family and friends. Their love of gambling brought John and Diane to Las Vegas for 11 years where he could be found at his favorite casinos - the Flamingo and M Resort (which his grandchildren proudly believed had been named after him). After returning to Minnesota, he continued enjoying trips to Mystic Lake with his daughters.

Careerwise, John skipped college and went straight to work at Prudential in the punch key division. He liked to joke, “I figured my friends who went to college would catch up to my income by the time we were 28. But they never caught me.” It was classic John—confident, funny, and delivered with just enough grin to let you know he was enjoying himself.

After ten years at Prudential, John spent fifteen years at Control Data, where he played an important role in a lawsuit involving IBM and was tasked with building a team. He often said, “I looked for women who stayed home and raised their kids because I knew they would be hard workers.” Long before many others recognized it, John saw talent and potential where others overlooked it, and he remained a strong champion for women throughout his career.

After getting laid off from Control Data at age 44, John did what he had always done—he moved forward. He put on a suit and headed downstairs to his unfinished basement, cinder block walls and all, and started his own company: Advanced Data International. That venture eventually evolved into Magnetic Products and Services and buying and selling computer back-up tape.

John expected Magnetic Products and Services to last about five years. Instead, it is going on 37 years. Along the way, he had the opportunity to work with both of his daughters and grow the company to employ as many as 50 people. When longtime employees were asked what they remembered most, the same response surfaced again and again: John was the best boss they ever had.

John is survived by his wife, Diane, daughters, Michelle Morey (Scott Bissen) & Kristine Hunter (Larry), grandchildren Drake Hunter, Hailey Burley (Kurtis), Jesse & Ben Bissen, great grandchildren Bo & Miley. Proceeded in death by son, Steven.

The family is having a private ceremony. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Payitforwardfund.net