Dr. John R Middleton

DR. JOHN RANDOLPH MIDDLETON 3 May 1926 – 16 May 2019 Dr. John Randolph Middleton, beloved husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather, passed away early on 16 May, peacefully in his sleep. From a family steeped in American history, like other men in the family and the rest of the Greatest Generation, he joined the Navy in WWII as soon as he was old enough. Returning from the war, he went to Louisiana College for his first of many degrees, where he met his wife, Joanne, and married her in 1950. He found his passion in learning and over a period of 2 decades, received his BS, two Masters and finally his doctorate; but the most important discovery for him was his love of teaching. In the late 50’s he took his family on their first overseas adventure with the DoD overseas school system and ultimately the Middletons lived in 8 different countries over 30 plus years of service. Upon retirement, he and Joanne moved to Florida and realized quickly he was not ready to retire, instead he again persued his teaching career as a professor at Eastern Florida State College and several local high schools, To this day, he often was told by former students what a positive impact he had on them and their future. That is the essence of him—service, genuine cordiality and love of family. To quote Will Rogers, “he never met anyone he didn’t like”. He leaves behind his wife of 70 years, Joanne, his son, John Jr (Jeanette) and daughter, Deirdre (Paul). His extended family includes 5 grandsons Jake, Ian, Conor, Paul Jr, and Evan , 2 granddaughters Rachel and Sara, and 6 great-grandchildren, Brianna, Ashton, Barbara Jean, Ava, Luke and Cercei . He was predeceased by his parents, Joel and Martha Middleton, his brother Joel Jr, and sister Ursula. He was also predeceased by his daughter Leeann. He leaves behind a legacy of incredible accomplishments and a world of friends. He showed his family the world and the excitement of living among different cultures and geography, from Canada to Paris to Turkey to Crete to Germany to Spain to England to Italy and finally, returning to Turkey. Most of all, he leaves a family that he taught the basic rules of being a good family member and an honest and productive citizen. He enjoyed a personal and close relationship with God and it was this unwavering faith that saw him through many tough situations. It was also his faith and the unconditional love and support of his family that enabled him to survive a near-fatal accident and almost a year of hospitalization. While suffering and close to death, he asked God to walk his path with him. To everyone’s, mostly doctors’, surprise, he made a recovery and continued his remarkable life. Today we celebrate him and do not mourn, for he now stands by gods side ready to begin eternal life in his hands. A Memorial Service for Mr. Middleton will be held at Prince of Peace Anglican Church on Saturday, May 25, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. with military honors to follow.