November 5 1942 July 17 2022
Obituary John Charles Gawne passed away on July 17, 2022, in Norfolk, VA with his family by his side. He was born on November 5, 1942, in Chicago, Illinois to James Donald and Margaret Gannon Gawne. John graduated from Mount Carmel High School in Chicago in 1960 and the University of Illinois in Champaign/Urbana in 1964 with a B.S. in Communications. In 1971, John received his M.S. in Management from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey. John served as an officer in the US Navy for 20 years, including aboard the USS Galveston CLG3 and the USS Walker DD517 on the naval gunfire line off Vietnam, and one year in-country in Vietnam with the Naval Advisory Group. He spent three years in Athens, Greece hosting a destroyer squadron as part of a homeporting plan, and then served aboard the USS Iwo Jima LPH2 and the USS John F Kennedy CV67. During his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star with combat V, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal with one gold star and combat V, Navy Achievement Medal, Meritorious Unit Commendation, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross w/Palm Unit Citation, Republic of Vietnam Training Service Honor Medal 1st Class, Vietnam Service Medal with nine stars, and Humanitarian Service Medal. Upon retiring from the Navy in 1984, John served as a management development consultant and training specialist with Sovran Bank/C&S Sovran Bank/NationsBank, and Bank of Virginia for 10 years. In 1995, he joined Old Dominion University as a faculty administrator and Executive Director of ITPro. In 2004, John turned his love of travel into his vocation and became an independent personal vacation specialist where he was named “Rookie of the Year”. Over the years including his time in the Navy, John visited over 50 countries, and he and his wife enjoyed over 100 cruises including the Baltic, Mediterranean, Canada/New England, the Caribbean, Alaska, the Mexican Riviera, and Tahiti. John also devoted over 30 years as a volunteer with United Way of South Hampton Roads in community funding and was a member of the Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Catholic Chapel for over 30 years serving as a lector. He also was an active member of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce for 15 years. He enjoyed gardening, cooking, and grilling for his family at his home in Virginia Beach, and those traditions live on in the generations that follow. John is survived by his wife, Karen Linn Gawne, his seven children including: John (Megan) Gawne, Jr., CDR USNR-Ret., Sarah (Samuel) Maroon, Mary (Patrick) Carolino, Kathleen McClung, Timothy (Melissa) Gawne, Patrick (Gina) Gawne, and Meghan Gawne; 16 grandchildren including: Hayleigh Hunter, Amanda Gawne, Sydney Gawne, Samuel Maroon II, Grace Maroon, Austin Carolino, Eleanor Carolino, Drew (Emma) McClung, Mara McClung, Alana McClung, Colton McClung, Kaelyn Gawne, Aria Gawne, Sydney Linn Gawne, Ronan Gawne, and Ryan Gawne; great grandchildren including Lana Hamilton, Emmett Hamilton, Lily Maroon, and the soon-to-arrive Baby McClung; siblings including: Margaret (Craig) Gawne-Mark, Joan (Bruce) Bowers, James (Anne) Gawne, and Brian (Janice) Gawne, Capt. USN-Ret., and fur babies Sage and Guinness. He was predeceased by his parents, and his siblings James D. Gawne, Joseph Gawne, Loretta Stahl, and fur baby Cinnamon. The family will receive visitors at the Hollomon-Brown Funeral Home, Bayside Chapel, 1457 Independence Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23455, on Thursday, July 21, 2022, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Reception to follow at Keagan’s Irish Pub, 244 Market Street, Virginia Beach, VA 23462. A funeral mass will be conducted at the Catholic Chapel, Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek/Fort Story in Virginia Beach on Friday, July 22, 2022, at 11 a.m. where a military ID holder may escort up to 10 guests with them. Interment will be at a later date with military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in John’s name to Fisher House Foundation, which builds comfort homes where military and veteran families can stay free of charge while a loved one is in the hospital. Donate at connect.fisherhouse.org/campaign/johncgawne
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of John Charles Gawne November 5 1942 July 17 2022.
Death notice for the town of: Chesapeake, state: Virginia