John Cheek

John Cheek, 77, passed away in his sleep on December 4, 2024. John was born amid a snowstorm on February 18, 1947 in Bladensburg, MD to the late LaVerne Cheek and Charles Cheek, with his wonderful big brother Jerry.

John grew up and lived in Bladensburg before marrying the love of his life, Patricia McDonald. Shortly after they married, John and Pat moved to Anne Arundel County. They were due to celebrate their 55th anniversary on December 13.

John was an amazing father and even more amazing grandfather. He is survived by his devoted wife Pat, his daughters Diana Cheek and Kelly Duffy, grandson Brendan Duffy, granddaughter Elisa Duffy, son-in-law John Moore, step-granddaughter Mackenzie Moore and brother Jerry Cheek.

John graduated from Bladensburg High School where he played football and had many escapades with his friends. John liked to hunt in his youth, and he especially loved fishing. He graduated from the University of Maryland where he met Patricia during their many hours of “studying” together. They married on a snowy December evening and lived in Landover for a year before moving to Cape Anne. They enjoyed crabbing and living right at the water with their two young girls. John and Pat later moved to Arden in Crownsville where they spent 10 years with good friends boating, camping, and getting into all sorts of crazy, unpublishable adventures. They later moved to Annapolis where John spent the last forty years of his life, with most of that time spent working on the house, resulting in a beautiful, fun to be in house. John built and fixed everything for his wife and daughters over the years, including building contraptions you didn’t even know you needed.

John worked for the Federal Government for thirty years and private contractors for a few years after before retiring to take care of his grandchildren. He worked at the VA, Pentagon and IRS, retiring after most of his time at the IRS.

Throughout his life, John enjoyed traveling. Along with his very ambitious tour guide Patricia, they visited all seven continents, with repeat visits to Europe, South America and Asia. John and Pat also took the family along on many trips, having recently taken the whole family to Italy to celebrate their anniversary. Their last big family adventure was an amazing week in Jackson, Wyoming. John enjoyed skiing, fishing and boating his whole life, and he especially loved his trips with the high school fishing crew. John and Patricia are lifelong Terps fans, and they had season tickets for several years. John also loved going to the Nats spring training games with his brother Jerry. John was also quite the chef, cooking amazing meals for family and friends over the years. His specialty was cooking fresh caught fish.

John is also survived by extended family, sisters-in-law Barbie and Terese, brothers-in-law Bob and Paul, nieces Julie, Leslie, Kristin and Kari, and nephews Mike, Patrick, Bill and Paul and their spouses and children. He is pre-deceased by his parents and in-laws, Eraine and Francis McDonald.

John will truly be missed. He was a fun, loving person who cared deeply for his friends and family. Services will be held on Friday January 10, 2025 at 11 am at St. Andrew by the Bay in Annapolis, with a reception following from 12-4 at the Severn Inn. In lieu of flowers, please send any donations to St. Vincent DePaul Society, St. Andrew by the Bay Catholic Church, 701 College Parkway. Annapolis, Maryland 21409.