John E. McGinnis

John was a husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. He was one of ten children born to Leo McGinnis and Alice Grant McGinnis on May 28, 1944 in Los Angeles, California. The importance of family was instilled early into him and he carried it on into his future. John enjoyed playing pinochle with his family and was blessed with natural athleticism; he was the captain of his high school football team and even was offered a football scholarship. John declined the scholarship to remain focused on his education and put himself through college.

He had met the love of his life, Kathie Mansfield, and after four years of dating, they were married. The couple had two children together, Patrick and Kelley. John was a smart and determined individual and managed to complete his Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering from Cal State Northridge while supporting his family.

John relocated with his family to Georgia in 1991 with his company, Lockheed Martin. He had an illustrious career at the aviation company including creating several patents and winning inventor of the year in 1997 for the Darkstar - an unmanned aircraft. He retired from Lockheed as a Program Manager & Engineer after 40 years of dedicated service in January of 2003.

John was well rounded and enjoyed ordering courses to gain knowledge about all kinds of topics. He had a deeply ingrained love for learning and could be considered a jack of all trades. John was also a beloved member of St. Catherine of Sienna Roman Catholic Church.

John is preceded in death by his parents, Leo and Alice McGinnis; sister, Terri Garcia; brother, Tommy McGinnis; and brother in laws, Ted Chittenden and Michael Hermanowski. He is survived by his loving wife of 46 years, Kathie Mansfield McGinnis; daughter, Kelley and her husband, Jeff Freeman, of Cameron Park, California; son, Patrick McGinnis and his wife, Christina, of Jupiter, Florida; grandchildren, Logan, Mason, and Nora Freeman and Michael and Kaylee McGinnis; sisters, Margie McGinnis in California, Pattie Chittenden in Arizona, Kathleen McGinnis in California, and Rose Hermanowski in Arizona; brothers, Bernie McGinnis in Hawaii, Leo McGinnis Jr. and his wife, Kathy, in Colorado, and Danny McGinnis and his significant other, Bobbi, of Arizona; brother in laws, Campbell Mansfield and his wife, Carol, in Indiana and Conrad Garcia in Arizona; sister in law, Nancy McGinnis in California; special friends, Tom and Crystal Scarborough and their children in Georgia; and many nieces, nephews, and extended family members.

The family will receive friends on Thursday, March 31, 2016 from 5:00 pm until 7:00 pm at Winkenhofer Pine Ridge Funeral Home in Kennesaw. A Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, April 1, 2016 at 10:30 am at St. Catherine of Sienna Roman Catholic Church in Kennesaw.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his honor to:

Wounded Warrior Project

PO Box 758517

Topeka, KS 66675

877-832-6997

https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/donate.aspx

or

Wellstar Community Hospice at Kennesaw Mountain

475 Dickson Avenue NW

Marietta, GA 30066

770-793-5000

https://ssl.4agoodcause.com/wellstar/donate1.aspx