John Orville Mitchell

Family was always the most important thing to John; from growing up in the suburbs of Pittsburgh with his siblings to a very active life with a family of his own. Growing up, his family was active in sports, especially tennis, baseball, basketball, and watersports. He always had an inquisitive mind, was studious in school and pushed himself to the highest level in academics. John was a strong man of faith and devoted Catholic attending services at least weekly and singing enthusiastically (although completely unable to carry a tune.) Above and beyond anything and everything, at the deepest center of his heart, was his love and devotion from first sight for the love of his life, Roslyn. John and Roslyn met on a blind date to the beach, which resulted in a lifelong romance in which they rarely spent a night apart and always held hands when walking together. When John took a rare few days of vacation without Roslyn, he cried each night at dinner because he missed her so much. At Christmas, he hid little presents for Roslyn around the house to do his own version of the twelve days of Christmas. Their love was a beautiful treasure for the entire world to see. He was a man of integrity, strength, and kindness with the most exuberant joyful spirit that was felt by all who knew him or encountered him in daily life.

He used his incredible memory to be able to recall details in the lives of his many friends and family to be able to connect on a deeper level. He truly loved and cared for them all and made sure that you felt cherished and important. He had the most brilliant sense of wit and humor and could light up the room with his laughter and comical stories. His trash talk during sporting events always brought a twinkle to his eye and usually to others as well. He led an extremely active lifestyle and participated in running, tennis and biking up until shortly before his death. He literally had hundreds of trophies and awards from competitions throughout his life, but his greatest treasures were his family and friends. An avid tennis player from youth, he continued playing up to his final days as well as organizing matches & building communities around the sport in Raleigh & Carolina Beach through his jovial, enthusiastic and tenacious nature. In his later years, he was more active than most people half his age and encouraged others to live their lives fully. In the 1980s he began running & built a community around the sport; organizing a corporate run team at IBM, local running groups & continuing with biweekly running events until a few weeks prior to his death.

His positive nature and enthusiasm, along with his sense of humor, were an inspiration to many, even as he faced increasing health challenges in recent years. He did not let age define him and encouraged those around him to enjoy life. He loved animals and children and kept a childlike playfulness throughout his life. He loved to gather with family for holidays, birthdays, and any reason. He always made you feel welcome and was always there for you.

John had a love for music of various types, but particularly rock, with a couple his favorites being AC/DC, the Scorpions, the Beatles and Bryan Adams. He often had a soundtrack accompanying his yard work or shower. He enjoyed live music of all types and loved to play live music tracks to relive the concert. He loved the symphony a well as seeing a variety of artists such as Ray Charles, Nina Simone, the Eagles, Aretha Franklin, Alice Cooper, Joan Jett, and his son Brian. He especially loved attending concerts with friends and family members, with shows ranging from Jimmy Buffet, Rush, and Heart to Wynton Marsalis with the New York City Jazz Orchestra.

John enjoyed gardening with his wife, woodworking, landscaping and watching sports. Roslyn always said that he was always busy doing something and that the Energizer Bunny had nothing on him. Since his retirement in 2008 he has split his time living in Raleigh & Carolina Beach, driving back and forth each week. He lived his life to the fullest, enjoying the sunrises at the beach with fresh juice made by Roslyn, body surfing, running on the beach and never meeting a stranger wherever he went.

In June of 1964, he graduated from Lehigh University, married his wife of nearly 60 years Roslyn, & began his 44 year career at IBM where he helped develop the computer communications technologies that allow so many of the conveniences we take for granted to this day. At IBM, he was called the midnight marauder for his late night work and was well known for working on 50 computers in his office at the same time often using outdated software. He described himself as “the ideas guy” and got a thank you letter from the president of the United States for his work on the IBM technology for the Olympics. He was required to wear a pager at all times during the Olympics in case of any problems, but no issues occurred even though he was not allowed to test his design in advance. He fully applied himself to working hard, playing hard, and living his life to the fullest.

John was preceded in death by his parents, Willard and Elleanora Mitchell, his son, Steven Christopher Mitchell, and his brother, Christopher Mitchell.

He is survived by his beloved wife Roslyn; children Barry (Monika), Jill (Steve), Mark (Donna), & Brian (Chelsea) Mitchell; & grandchildren Dillon, Kahlan, Claire, & Violet Mitchell; his brother Paul Mitchell; his sister Louise Mitchell Sloan; a multitude of much loved cousins, nieces and nephews; and a countless number of friends from all aspects of his life.

A Funeral Mass and Reception to follow will be May 17th at 11 am at St. Raphael’s Catholic Church in Raleigh.

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