Deceased February 5, 2023
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IN MEMORY
John Michael Demcisak died in Woodstock, Ill., on Feb. 5, 2023. He was 85.
He was born June 29, 1937, in Pottstown, Pa., and graduated from Girard College, a high school in Philadelphia.
After Amherst, where he majored in political science, he earned a law degree from Columbia in 1962.
While at Amherst, John was a member of Chi Phi and earned his room and board working as a College student-photographer. Many of his images, distributed by the College, appeared without credit in newspapers and magazines. He continued his photographic efforts at our reunions, including two informal ones at Roger Hull ’59’s winery in California, documenting the wedding of Lou Greer ’59 and Dee Shields.
John married Marian Griffiths (Columbia School of Nursing) in 1962.
He worked for Philadelphia law firms before opening a solo practice in nearby Hatboro, Pa., in 1973; moved his office to Willow Grove, Pa., in 1981; and retired in 2002. He continued to serve family and friends from his home in Hatboro until moving to Woodstock in 2019.
Throughout his life, John was committed to working for the benefit of his community. After moving to Hatboro, he spent 51 years immersed in the civic life of the borough. He served 12 years as the lone Democrat on the seven-member Borough Council and was the primary author of a revised zoning code. He was also active in multiple other civic, political and cultural organizations.
A strong proponent of public education, he worked for the improvement of area schools and was active in the Girard College Alumni Association, receiving its Award of Merit in 1990.
A talented amateur photographer, he was also a woodworking enthusiast and avid do-it-yourselfer.
He is survived by his wife; three children, Michael, Suzanne Steinberg ’89 and Andrew; and five grandchildren.
Claude Erbsen ’59