Cecil Edward John “John” Way, Jr. Obituary (1937 - 2019)

John Way died at Mountainside Hospital in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, early in the afternoon of Saturday, February 9, after a very short illness and one day shy of his 82nd birthday. With him when he died were his two sons, Jack, Jim and his caretaker of 13 years, Rosalba Jurado. Cecil Edward John Way Jr. was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1937 to Colonel Cecil Way and Florrie Lane Way. John attended St. Andrews School in Middletown, Delaware, and then went on to earn an architectural degree at Cornell University in 1959. Soon after, he began his professional career in New York, NY, joining prominent firms including Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates; Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP; and Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (now HOK), and working for well-known architects including Philip Johnson and I.M. Pei. His most notable projects included the 1980 Olympic Arena at Lake Placid, U.S. Embassy housing in Cairo, Egypt, the Minnesota Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, and Sony's U.S. Headquarters in Park Ridge, NJ. While working in New York, John met Judy Marie Simons and they were married in 1961. Together, they lived on the upper west side of Manhattan until 1970. They then moved to Montclair, New Jersey in 1971 with Jack and Jim. John continued to work in New York City until opening his own practice, Way & Associates Architects, in 1981, focusing on residential architecture, which he continued until his passing. An avid golfer and traveler, John also mesmerized audiences with his Charleston dancing. He and his wife had been members of the Montclair Golf Club since 1988 where they participated in many sports and social events. They were also Metropolitan Opera patrons and enjoyed the theater and lectures at the New York Public Library. Following Judy's passing in 2006 after a year-long battle with cancer, John continued working as well as enjoying the opera, plays, and lectures. He also traveled with friends to Cuba, Russia, Italy, Mexico, Chile, and other destinations. John is survived by, Jack in Washington, DC, and Jim in northern Virginia, and his six grandchildren. A remembrance reception will take place at the Montclair Golf Club on Saturday, March 2, from 3pm to 6pm. In lieu of flowers, the family would prefer donations to National Public Radio.