In loving memory of
John Lee Shaw

• October 17, 1932
• -
• June 19, 2021

• Share

John Lee Shaw died unexpectedly after a short hospital visit, on June 19, 2021 in Sarasota Florida, at the age of 88.
John is survived by his wife of 50 years, Carol (Stewart Thomas), sons Gary (Donna) of Charlotte NC, Steven (Heather) of Teaneck NJ and Robert Thomas (Emily Pedersen) of Brighton MA. He is also survived by his brother Howard (Kathryn) of Allendale NJ and his nephew Howard (Lynne) of Rutherford NJ. He was predeceased by his son Kevin.
John was born in Hackensack, NJ on October 17, 1932 to Howard and Millicent (Heath) Shaw. He attended local schools, and served in the Army from 1951-1953. Upon discharge, he earned his BA degree from Rutgers University, and his MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson University. He married Claire Wilkins in 1953, and had three sons
John spent his career in management in a number of Fortune 500 companies, including IBM, Avon, Bristol Myers and Gulf & Western. He retired in 1987 as Executive Vice President of Ticketmaster.
He married Carol in 1971, and welcomed her son Robert into the family. They lived in Connecticut for 45 years, in Weston and Southbury, before relocating to Sarasota in 2019. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in February 2021.
John loved the NY Mets and the NY football Giants. He had season tickets for the Giants for 35 years. Even after moving to Florida, he continued to follow his teams.
But John and Carol’s greatest love was travel. In the years after his retirement, they visited over 100 countries, mostly by cruise ship. At the time of his death, they had taken 97 cruises. They also enjoyed taking their family on villa trips to several parts of the world. These were always memorable.
John loved and appreciated the relationship he had with his family. Upon his unexpected death, his sons posted moving tributes to him and his life on Facebook. He was a kind and quiet man with a killer sense of humor. Laughter was a key strength in his marriage. He will be deeply missed by his family and friends.
Funeral arrangements will be private.