John W. McFarland

John W. McFarland passed away June 18, 2024, in Englewood, Colorado at the age of 84.  Born on May 11, 1940, in Butte, Montana, John was the only child of Thomas N. McFarland and Veneta (Slack) McFarland, whom John loved and adored.  A proud Coloradan and Denverite, John was a 1958 graduate of East High School and a 1962 graduate of the University of Colorado as a history major and with minors in Zoology and Chemistry; John subsequently earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery from Northwestern University in 1967.  After graduating from dental school, John served as a Captain in the US Air Force; his duty stations included Virginia and Libya.  After his military service, John lived and worked in private practice for two years in Sydney, Australia.   

John was preceded in death by his father and his mother and is survived by his wife, Linda McFarland, his nephew, Aaron Jensen (of Greenville, South Carolina), his niece Kelli (Jensen) Cost (of Columbus, Georgia) and his grandnephew, Will Ortegren (currently attending Eckerd College in St Petersburg, Florida).  

John and Linda were married October 1, 1983, and enjoyed 40 years of marriage filled with family, friends, a rewarding career, selfless charitable work, golf, and travel to every corner of the earth.  John was a kind and compassionate man, a man who cared and worked tirelessly to help the less fortunate, who throughout his life exhibited a child-like curiosity, enthusiasm and excitement for life and knowledge, a man who loved music and who valued his friendships, and who loved to travel. 

John’s compassion and care for the less fortunate was evidenced by his tireless advocacy for migrant workers’ health.  Dr. McFarland served as the Director of Dental Services for Salud Family Health from 1972 to 2016.  When John joined Salud in 1972, he had a vision that dental and medical care should be fully integrated to deliver quality care and an improved patient experience.  Under his leadership, the Salud dental program grew into a robust program with 13 clinics; his contributions in providing care for the less fortunate were instrumental in fueling a national movement to implement and expand dental services in community health centers across the country.  John was one of the founders and the first president of the National Network for Oral Health Access (“NNOHA”), an organization dedicated to advancing access to oral health for those who are unable to afford it.  Founded in 1991, NNOHA began with 20 members; today NNOHA has more than 5,500 members in all 50 states.  

John loved music and was a great jazz pianist.  Over the years, John played in a number of jazz groups in various venues around Denver, Colorado and in Chicago.  As homage to his love of music, John’s piano and keyboard are an integral and featured part of Linda and John’s home.  

John and Linda have enjoyed friendships with many diverse and interesting people from every walk of life, from many and various corners of this world and of myriad interests.  An accomplished conversationalist, John curated friendships and relationships like some collect art or wine.  His curiosity, enthusiasm and excitement for life and knowledge attracted him to so many and attracted so many to him.  

You would find John and Linda cheering on the Bronco’s each fall, as John was an avid Bronco’s fan and a season ticket holder for over 50 years. 

Loving travel and exploring the world, John and Linda have been to every continent and most multiple times.  Travel was, in a sense, the amalgamation of John’s varied interests and pursuits - people, curiosity, music, knowledge, conversation and diversity.   

John’s was a life well lived.  He will be greatly missed by many.  The life he shared will continue to live on in the memories of everyone whose life John touched.   

Celebration of Life for John McFarland

Tuesday, June 25 at 4:00pm

Quebec Place at Fairmount

430 S. Quebec St., Denver, CO

(Enter off Alameda and park on the north side of the building)

Private burial at a later date

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to:

Salud Family Health (https://www.saludclinic.org/make-a-donation)

or

NNOHA (https://engage.nnoha.org/donate), 

the two organizations that were near and dear to John.