We met at work, yes, but John was more than a workmate. We became literally /instant/ friends the second we met when I began working on a show he was in charge of. Then as we talked we found out we were both from Chicago and both /huge/ Star Trek fans. Our fully organic friendship grew quickly from there as did our excellent and fun work relationship. We used to bring in Trek collectibles we would get to show each other. While we both loved all Trek, his fav was TNG, mine was TOS. We would bring in and show each other our Eaglemoss ENTERPRISES, his the D, mine the Connie. He eventually would end up at my house and he loved my genre-based and Star Trek adored house. He was my friend that fully “got” what I was into and shared an equal love of it. We loved Star Trek sure, but we were both Star Wars fanboys, too. I remember when he pulled me away from my desk like we were two excited 12-year-olds just to show me the new windshield sunscreen he had just bought for his new Fiat, of Han, Chewey, Obi-Wan and Luke in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon. I was like; “Whoa, brother, that's sO cool! Where'd you get that? Must have!” When I got a new screen for myself it was of Luke in the cockpit of his Snowspeeder. I picked that one because I was thinking and aping you, brother! Never fails to make me think of you when I put it up or look at it, and it will even more now, brother...

John was one of my supervisors at CoSA and totally understood my approach to creating assets and fully trusted me to just let me go and he knew he’d get more than he could hope for and on time. Via our personal friendship, he knew I was a self-starter and that like himself I had also had my own business for years, and also that I'd been an art director and manager myself before, too, thus I required no typical oversight to get the job done. Which he loved. He was a dream boss in that regard. We respected and trusted each other impeccably as workmates. We were more a fully enthusiastic creative team-up rather than supervisor and subordinate. He fully understood that I had arrived at a place in my career that I just wanted to build and paint models and he let me run free to do just that. He’d come over now-and-then to visit my desk as just friends, or we'd go out and grab lunch together, and vent to me about the crazy nonsense that comes part-and-parcel with being a supervisor and trying to get things done on a tight deadline and then look at my models on screen and just smile. I used to joke with him as I was 15 years older than him; “You’ll give up the money and headaches that comes being a supervisor one day, too, brother, and return to the box (the computer, actually hands-on making art).” He would kinda laugh and then smile-sigh and say, “Yeah, you’re the smart one, Deg.” I’d say, “You’ll get there, too, brother.” He’d smile weary-eyed. I’d smile back and hug and fist-bump him. Onward!

We loved working on “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D.“ together as we were both fanboys of the show as well. It was a friendship made in Heaven really. John was always one of the coolest, sweetest, mega-talented, funny, laid-back, conscientious, and caring humans I’ve ever been blessed to have in my life. I will miss John dearly on so, so many levels. ????❤️

We also shared a love for genre t-shirts and I’ll always remember him always smailing his great smile in his “Speed Racer” t-shirt in our back-yard for our 4th of July BBQ.

My heart is with your family and loved ones.

Fair voyage, brother. Touch a star for me. Cya on the other side, brother...