John P. “Jack” McGeough, 79, of Middletown, RI, and Naples, FL, passed away on June 5, 2020. He was the husband of Regina “Jeanne” (Pisklak) McGeough.
John was born in Providence to Earl and Anne (Sullivan) McGeough. He spent his childhood days in Cranston, graduated from LaSalle Academy ‘58, and Providence College ‘62 where he was a standout hockey player and Co-Captain of both teams. He was the first Rhode Islander and only American to make the American Hockey League’s Rhode Island Reds where he played from 1962-1964. He also played for the US National Hockey Team during that period.
John was a true visionary and pioneer in the International Seafood Industry for over 50 years. He spent his early business life in North Kingstown where he raised his four children. He owned and managed Wickford Marina (Top of the Dock), Wickford Shipyard, Wickford Shellfish Company. He also served as President of the Prelude Food Corporation, a domestic and international seafood company. These businesses included catching, processing, and selling a broad variety of seafood to distributors and manufacturers. In the 80’s he founded Newport International and held the position of CEO and Chairman. In the 90’s he moved the company to St. Petersburg Florida, where he added product lines and grew the business, until he sold it in 2013. He then served as an external consultant to the company until retirement.
In his personal life, John was an outstanding athlete and skilled outdoorsman. He shared his passion with his children through coaching their youth sports teams. Most notably he coached for over a decade for the Warwick Youth Hockey program, where his three sons played. When he was not on the ice, he was on the ocean. As an avid sailor and sports fisherman, he sailed and fished the waters off the coast of Rhode Island, New England, and throughout the world. Some of his fondest memories are fishing with his wife, children, and grandchildren. He and Jeanne traveled around the world together, frequenting Key West and the Islands.
John was active in his retirement as a board member of the Newport YMCA among other philanthropic endeavors.
John is survived by his wife Jeanne, his children, John Jr. And his wife, Denise of Wayland, Ma, Peter and his wife, Mary of Newport, RI, Carrie and her husband, Jim Burns of Reading, Ma. and Mark and his wife, Sarah of Huntersville, NC., Jeanne’s daughter Missi and her husband, Michael Monahan of Middletown, and his sister, Nancy (Harney) of Virginia Beach, VA. He will also be missed by his 10 grandchildren Kelsey, John III, Peter, Mason, William, Emma, Jackson, Ava, Maeve, and Miles.
He was preceded in death by his parents Arthur Earl and Anne (Sullivan) McGeough of East Greenwich, RI and sisters, Susan and Lois.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, June 12 in St. Joseph’s Church, Broadway, Newport. Due to limited capacity of churches at this time, there will be a private mass, and later in the summer, a private memorial.
We would like to thank Newport Hospital, especially the heroes in the Emergency Room for their humanity and compassion. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in John’s name to:
Newport Hospital Foundation 11 Friendship Street Newport, RI 02840 http://giving.lifespan.org/Newport/donate,
Newport County YMCA C/o Development office 792 Valley Road Middletown, RI 02842, www.newportymca.org/giving
