John Edward Messer

John Edward Messer, Jr.
John E. Messer, Jr. passed away peacefully, in Atlanta, Sunday, December 1, 2013, after a long battle with bladder cancer. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on October 18, 1929. After graduating from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, he completed graduate work at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. He served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. In 1954 he married Marlene Gibson of Cincinnati, and the newlyweds moved to Jacksonville, Florida. John worked for the Jacksonville Paper Company and eventually became vice president. He later moved back to Ohio to focus his career on managing industrial real estate. John was a nationally ranked badminton player and won many national doubles titles in the mid-1970s. After his divorce from Marlene, he married Geraldine Joyce Carlin of Twinsburg, Ohio and remained married to her until her death in 2005. Upon retirement, he moved to Atlanta, where he was delighted to be near his daughter and her children. John is survived by daughter Laurie, his grandchildren Davis and Ansley Baker, and his loyal canine companion Sassy. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice Atlanta Center of the Visiting Nurse System, 1244 Park Vista Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30319 telephone 404-869-3000.