John Edwin Neese

Thursday, May 27, 2021 due to complications relating to Alzheimer’s at the age of 89.

John was born on April 30, 1932 in Linden, Texas. He was baptized at the age of 9 by his pastor Dr. Wilson in Pruitt’s Lake near his home. He was preceded in death by his parents, T.B. and Audrey Neese, and his sister, Betty Jones.

He graduated from Atlanta High School (Atlanta, TX) in 1950 and served as president of his class. He attended East Texas State University (Now Texas A&M at Commerce) beginning in 1950 and graduating in 1954. His MBA work was at the University of Oregon 1960-63. He received his commission through the Air Force ROTC program and entered the United States Air Force in July 1954. He attended Navigator flight training in Houston at Ellington AFB & James Connally AFB in Waco, TX and Jet Transition Flight training at Moody AFB, Georgia.

He joined the 460th Fighter Interceptor Squadron in Portland, Oregon March 1956. There he married his wife, Dorothy on March 1, 1958. Later he was assigned to the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (FIS) in Keflavík, Iceland on an isolated tour in June 1958 flying the F-89C as a Radio Observer (RO) as part of NATO's Air Defense system intercepting Russian Bear Bombers and missions to Cuba.

In June 1959 he was assigned as an Air Force Advisor to the Oregon Air National Guard flying the F-89C and serving as a navigator and training officer. In 1963 he attended Air Command and Staff College in Montgomery, Alabama. Upon graduation in 1964 he was assigned as Fighter Operations Officer in the Sioux City, Iowa Air Defense Section and in 1965 assigned to General Dynamics in Ft. Worth as an Air Force Management intern through the USAF Education with Industry (EWI) program. In July 1966 he was assigned to the Boeing Company Air Force Plant Representative Office (AFPRO) in Seattle as an Air Force representative administering Air Force contracts with the Boeing Company.

John served a tour of duty in Vietnam beginning in March of 1970 as the Executive Officer of the 9th Special Operations Squadron (SOS) in support of psychological warfare missions flying over Laos and Cambodia. He flew over 400 combat hours in specially modified C-47’s and the O-2B Skymaster aircrafts. He served at Biên Hòa, Phan Rang, and Da Nang Air Bases in Vietnam.

Upon returning to the USA in November 1970, he was assigned to Headquarters Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) at Andrews AFB near Washington D.C. as Chief of Contract Administration Division, then Chief of Industrial Resources Division which oversaw Care and Maintenance of over 50 Air Force owned plants including the General Dynamics plant in Ft. Worth (now Lockheed Martin) where he went through Education with Industry (EWI) training. In 1976 he took command of the newly established Air Force Plant Representative Office (AFPRO) at Westinghouse in Baltimore, Maryland

overseeing government contracts for the F-16 radar and E3 AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) rotodome radar. In 1978 John was assigned to lead Air Force consulting teams to major Air Force acquisition Programs Managers through the Program Management Assistance Group (PMAG).

John retired from the Air Force in 1980 and accepted a job with General Electric, Aircraft Equipment Division in Syracuse, New York. In 1989 John accepted a promotion and reassignment as the Manager of Quality Assurance in G.E.'s Steam Turbine plant in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. John retired from G.E. in November 1992 and moved back to Texas at the end of 1996. He and Dorothy spent 1997 locating a lot, designing and building their dream home, and finding their church home at Hunters Glen Baptist Church. They spent time traveling to Alaska, Ireland, and the northern ten capitals of the Baltic Sea. They thoroughly enjoyed their role as grandparents.

John's military awards include the Legion of Merit; The Distinguished Flying Cross; The Meritorious Service Medal with Two Oak Leaf Clusters; the Air Medal with Two Oak Leaf Clusters; Vietnam Service Medal; Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm and Campaign Medal plus several other medals and numerous letters of commendation.

John was a sixty-year plus member of Masonic Lodge #463 in Atlanta, TX. John & Dorothy celebrated 63 years of marriage on March 1, 2021. He is survived by his loving wife, Dorothy Anne Neese; son, John Mark Neese; daughter Kimberly Anne Beach and her husband Scott; and daughter Lisa Lynne Johnson and her husband Jeff; Ten grandchildren, Tanya, Dima, Sergey (wife Galya), and Masha Chelpannikov (Mark’s children); Kelsey Westbrook (husband Darrel), Alli Martin (husband Darren) and Taylor Beach (Kim’s children); and Trevor, McKenna and Holden Johnson (Lisa’s children). Great-grandchildren Kirill, Milana, Aliana, and Khloia Chelpannikov; Connor and Quinn Westbrook; and Jake and Scott Martin. He is also survived by his younger brother Harrel Neese and his wife Juliene; younger sister Nancy Zuber and her husband Kenny, plus numerous nieces and nephews. John took great pleasure in being with his grandchildren and being a part of their lives.

Visitation will be at Ted Dickey West Funeral Home on Monday, June 7, 2021 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, 7990 George Bush Turnpike, Dallas, Texas 75252. Life Celebration Services will be held at Hunters Glen Baptist Church, 4001 Custer Road, Plano, TX 75023 at 10:00am, on Tuesday, June 8, 2021, with a reception to follow. Burial with full military honors will occur that afternoon at 2:15pm at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the family asks that memorials be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or the Building Fund at Hunters Glen Baptist Church.