John "Jack" Howard Bryan

John Howard (Jack) Bryan, beloved husband, father, and grandfather, passed away peacefully on April 6, 2024 after a life full of good books, innovative science, and steadfast devotion to his family. He was born July 5, 1930 to John Henry Bryan and Ruth Neff Bryan at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City. He grew up with an older sister, Naomi, and a younger brother, Robert. He lived in a little house on 5th East until the winter of 1932, when his family moved to England. They lived in Brentwood, Essex and Newcastle-upon-Tyne until 1935, then returned to Salt Lake City. Jack attended Lowell Elementary School through 5th grade, changing to Sherman School when his family moved to East Mill Creek. He attended Irving (now Olympus) Junior High and Granite High School, graduating with the class of 1947. During his high-school years, Jack delivered the Deseret News to the many fine people of East Mill Creek and worked as a butcher’s assistant at New Way Food Stores #3 on 23rd East.

After graduating from Granite, Jack worked briefly at Equitable Life Assurance Society and then attended the University of Utah, studying electrical engineering and working on the U’s literary magazine, The Pen. After his junior year at the U, he transferred to Stanford University to concentrate on electronics, aided by a Henry Newell scholarship. Graduating with distinction in 1951, he worked in the Maintenance Engineering Department at Hill Field during the following summer as B-26s and B-29s from the Korean campaign were being serviced. Jack started graduate school at Stanford in the fall of 1951, completing a Master’s degree in 1953. At the same time, he started working part-time at Stanford Research Institute. He did not know it at the time, but this was the beginning of a career with SRI that spanned over fifty years, interrupted only in 1953, when Jack was drafted into the US Army near the end of the Korean War. After completing Basic Training at Fort Ord, California, he was assigned to Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, where he completed his two-year tour of duty working at Evans Signal Laboratory, in the Antenna and Microwave Circuitry Section of the Radar Development Branch. He was discharged honorably in January, 1955, holding the rank of corporal.

Jack returned to full-time work at SRI, while continuing with further graduate studies. In 1960, he earned the degree of Engineer (Stanford’s “professional” degree); his thesis was titled, “The Effect of Receiver Nonlinearity on Clutter Cancellation in an MTI (Moving Target Indication) Radar.” In 1962, Jack met Catherine Peterson, a Stanford speech therapy graduate student from Fairview, Utah. They dated, then on July 23, 1963, they were married at Catherine’s home in Fairview. In 1964 they bought a house and moved from their apartment in Menlo Park to their new home in Newark, California. They lived in Newark nearly forty years. Their three children–John, Sarah, and Mary Catherine–were born in 1965, 1969, and 1973, respectively. He loved to work with his children on their homework, stressing the importance of understanding the challenges of the course material instead of settling for quick-and-easy textbook answers. He was a devoted father who gently shared his love of language, science, and thoughtful spiritual living with his children (and anyone who had a spare moment). Through his example, he taught his children the importance of living with charity, integrity and humility.

While he and Cathy were living in Newark, Jack served in the LDS church as MIA Speech Director, MIA Superintendent, Jr. Sunday School Instructor, Executive Secretary, Ward Clerk, and Bishop’s Counselor. His favorite callings were Scouting Coordinator and home teacher. He loved joining the lads and other scouters on outings in the Pacific Coast Range and the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Later, when the youth he had taught served full-time missions, he wrote weekly letters to each of them, helping them feel loved and supported during their time away from home. Jack was naturally curious and interested in learning from everyone he met. He was gentle and kind, always eager to think the best of others.

While Jack was working at SRI, he produced numerous classified technical reports, presentations, and papers, leading his family to wonder what he really did at work. His thorough attention to detail, clear communication, and frank assessment of his results drew numerous commendations from clients and ensured a steady stream of work coming his way. In addition to his work for clients, Jack was very involved in the Institute of Electronic Engineers, serving for year as chairman of the Bay Area group on “Systems, Man, and Cybernetics,” where he was able to meet and learn from a number of outstanding fellow engineers from the Bay Area. After five decades leading groundbreaking electronics projects and solving difficult problems in emerging military technology, Jack retired from SRI in 2002. He and Cathy, the Love of his Life, moved to Holladay, just a few miles south of the East Mill Creek home of his adolescence. He enjoyed traveling the world with Cathy, attending University of Utah athletic events, and doting on his grandchildren and supporting their wide-ranging pursuits. Jack always worked hard, never complaining, to make sure that his family had what they needed.

Jack is survived by his wife, Catherine, his children - John Bryan (Anne), Sarah Gwilliam (Jeff), Mary Catherine Perry (Jason), his 13 grandchildren, and his brother, Robert (Teresa). He was preceded in death by both parents and by his sister Naomi in May 2007.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 13, 2024, at 11:00 am at the Olympus 7th Ward, 2675 East 4430 South, Holladay, Utah. Interment will follow at 3:15 pm in the Fairview Cemetery. Viewings on Friday, April 12 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 S Highland Drive, Millcreek, Utah, and on Saturday, April 13, 2024 from 10:00 am to 10:30 am at the Olympus 7th Ward.

Livestream of services can be viewed at:

https://view.oneroomstreaming.com/index.php?data=MTcxMjYzMDk0NDMwMzgzMSZvbmVyb29tLWFkbWluJmNvcHlfbGluaw==

Donations in Jack’s honor can be made by contributing to the John H. Bryan Scholarship in Electrical Engineering at the University of Utah. Donations can be made online at:

https://ugive.app.utah.edu/designation/5384

or by mail at:

University Advancement Office

PO Box 58006

Salt Lake City, UT 84158