Sidney "Jack" McDuff

Sidney Jack McDuff passed away on April 14, 2025, at the age of 98. During his lifetime, Jack had the good fortune to have married two good-looking, charming, smart, overachieving, loving, caring, and very thoughtful women.

The first, Lorena DeSanctis, he met and courted at the University of Arizona. There, she exercised leadership roles in student government and publication organizations—most noteworthy, as Editor of the yearbook, The Desert. She earned the Thomas E. Campbell Memorial Award in 1947 for her leadership ability and the Freeman Medal as the outstanding woman in her senior class in 1950. She graduated with High Distinction and was named to Phi Beta Kappa. She was a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority. In 1951, she was honored to receive a Rotary Foundation Fellowship to attend Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, for a year. In 1967, she received an Alumni Service Award for her organizational and leadership ability, helping Alumni Clubs in San Francisco, Houston, and New York. She was an outgoing, warm, and naturally friendly person. Lorena had an abiding love and deep compassion for her fellow man. She had a remarkable ability to communicate with people in all walks of life. Wherever she lived, she worked tirelessly and enthusiastically for numerous worthy causes, all aimed at improving the quality of life for those around her. They were married in 1953, had no children, and she passed away in 1975.

Forty-five days after Lorena passed away, Eileen DeCoursey joined Johns-Manville Corporation, where Jack was a Division General Manager, as Vice President for Employee Relations—thus becoming one of the first women to achieve the Corporate Vice President level at two Fortune 500 companies. She was a Corporate Vice President for the Squibb Corporation when she left to join Johns-Manville.

Eileen grew up in New Jersey and graduated from high school at the Mount Saint Dominic Academy. She later earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Kean University, where she served as President of the Student Body. In 1976, Eileen and Jack were married. While living in Denver, Eileen served on the Board of Directors for the Mile High United Way, Craig Hospital, Loretto Heights College, and the First Colorado Bank and Trust. In Tucson, she was an untiring advocate for foster children in the court-appointed CASA program, a strong supporter of the University of Arizona, the YMCA of Southern Arizona, and St. Thomas the Apostle Church.

In 2000, Eileen was named by Mount Saint Dominic Academy to its Hall of Fame, and the school's data processing library is named for the DeCoursey family. She was a leading pioneer in women's fight for job opportunity in corporate America, a loving and caring person, and a wonderful wife. She passed away in 2004. Jack was a very fortunate man to be married to two such women.

Jack was born September 26, 1926, in Cold Springs, Oklahoma. In April 1937, his parents, Frank and Nannie, and their three children moved to Marana, Arizona, where Jack’s dad built and operated one of the first cotton gins in Southern Arizona. His parents remained in Marana for the next 53 years until their passing in 1990. N. McDuff Road in Marana is named in honor of his mother.

He graduated from Marana High School in May 1944 in a class of seven. The whole student body consisted of 26 with a faculty of six. He enrolled at the University of Arizona in September 1944. There, he pledged the Sigma Chi Fraternity and was initiated on December 10th. Two days later, he was inducted into the United States Navy and served for 21 months, attaining the rank of Electronics Technician Mate Second Class. Jack was very fortunate during his naval service. After boot camp, he was either in school or an instructor in the school until his discharge.

In September 1946, he returned to the University of Arizona and served the Beta Phi Chapter of Sigma Chi as Magister, Quaestor for two years, and Consul. He represented the Chapter at the 1948 Grand Chapter, the 1950 Grand Chapter, and the 1950 Leadership Training Workshop. He was the Chapter’s nominee for the Western Province Balfour Award in 1951. In 2002, he was inducted into the Beta Phi Chapter’s Hall of Fame.

On campus, he won Freshman, Sophomore, and Senior Scholarship honors and was elected to Pi Mu Epsilon—Mathematics Honorary. He won three varsity letters in track and was Business Manager of the yearbook, The Desert. He was a member of Hammer & Coffin—National Literary & Humor Honorary; Theta Tau—National Engineering Honorary; Bobcats—Senior Men Honorary; and was named to Who’s Who in American Colleges & Universities. Jack graduated in May 1951 with a B.S. in Metallurgical Engineering. In 1969, he was awarded the Honorary Degree of Professional Engineering from the College of Mines at the University of Arizona.

He spent 30 years of his professional career with Johns-Manville Sales Corporation, serving the last ten years as Vice President and Division General Manager. In 1971, he attended the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program. He retired in 1982 and started S. Jack McDuff & Associates, Inc., where he was active in commercial real estate development and served as a Trustee for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Arizona.

As an alumnus of the University of Arizona, he served as president of U of A Alumni Clubs in San Francisco, Houston, and New York City. He was the first recipient of the A.L. Slonaker Alumni Service Award in 1961. He was President of the Bobcat Alumni Association for four years, and in 1993 received the Bobcat A.L. Slonaker Award for outstanding service to the University of Arizona.

Jack served six years on the U of A Alumni Association Board of Directors, where he was Chairman of the campaign to name the Alumni/Foundation building in honor of his lifelong friend and fraternity brother, Marvin D. "Swede" Johnson. In 1998, he was awarded the U of A Alumni Association Centennial Award and in 2000 the Bear Down Award. At Homecoming 2013, he received the Sidney P. Wood Alumni Service Award for his many years of outstanding service to the University of Arizona. At Homecoming 2016, he received the Bobcat A.L. Slonaker Award for his service and loyalty to the University of Arizona and for achieving a professional career of distinction. On April 30, 2017, Jack was a member of the inaugural class of inductees into the Hall of Fame of the College of Engineering.

As an alumnus of Sigma Chi, Jack was a member of the Leadership Training Workshop Faculty from 1959 to 1968 and was the first recipient of the William H. Carlisle Outstanding Faculty Award in 1967. He was a member of the Leadership Training Board (1968–73), Grand Praetor of the Northern California–Nevada Province (1967–69), a member of the Grand Trustees (1969–75) including being the Grand Trustee representative on the Executive Committee (1971–72). He was the Member-at-Large to the Executive Committee (1972–73), He was elected Grand Quaestor in 1975, and Grand Pro-Consul in 1977. In 1979, he was elected the 50th Grand Consul of Sigma Chi at the 62nd Grand Chapter in Indianapolis, Indiana. He completed twelve years of service on the Executive Committee with his final two years as Past Grand Consul.

Starting in 1983, he served twelve years as Chairman of the Fraternity’s philanthropic project—The Wallace Village for Children. From 1987 through 1999, he was a member of the Board of Governors of the Sigma Chi Foundation and was named Governor Emeritus in 1999. In 2005, Jack was named to the Sigma Chi Fraternity 150th Anniversary Hall of Fame. He was named to the Order of Constantine in 1976 and received the Significant Sig Medal in 1983.

Prior to his passing, he was Chairman Emeritus of two Scholarship Committees at the University of Arizona and had been a member of the Da Vinci Circle in the College of Engineering since its inception. He was also a member of the University of Arizona Presidents Club.

In addition, Jack was an active member of the Board of Directors of the YMCA of Southern Arizona from 1988 through the fall of 2024. His longtime fraternity brother, friend, and mentor, Bob Svob, recruited him to serve. He was the first Chairman of the Chairman’s Round Table, which has grown from 18 to more than 250 members, each of whom has donated at least $1,000 in annual giving to the YMCA. He also served as Chairman of the Annual Sustaining Fund Campaign, which enables the Y to fulfill its credo: No child shall be turned away who cannot afford to pay. Jack served as Vice-Chairman of the board from 1991–1995 and his work as Chairman of the Board of Directors from 1995–1997 was the driving force behind the conception and construction of the nine-million-dollar branch facility in Northwest Tucson.

He served as a member of the Board of Directors of the YMCA Foundation of Southern Arizona from 1998 until 2021 and was then named as an Emeritus Director.

In November of 2003, Jack and Eileen, his wife of 27 years who passed away on January 19, 2004, were honored by the YMCA of Southern Arizona by being named Honorary Life Members—the highest recognition that a volunteer can receive from the YMCA. In October 2014, Jack was named to the YMCA Hall of Fame.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Jack’s name to:

The YMCA Foundation of Southern ArizonaP.O. Box 1111Tucson, AZ 85702-1111

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 5150 N. Valley View Road, at 10:00 a.m. on May 21, 2025

A reception will be held immediately following the service at St. Thomas the Apostle Church.

Arrangements by Adair Funeral Home, Dodge Chapel.