John Paul “Jack” Burns Jr., (68) of Manasquan, NJ passed away on October, 18th, 2018 at home after a brief illness. Relatives and friends are invited to attend the visitation at Higgins and Bonner Echo Lake Funeral Home, 582 Springfield Ave. , Westfield, N.J. Visitation hours will be Thursday, October 25 from 4:00 to 8:00 pm and on Friday, October 26 from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm.
The Burial will follow at St. Gertrude Cemetery, Colonia, N.J. Jack is predeceased by his parent’s Helen and John Paul Burns, Sr He is survived by his four siblings, Cathy, Nancy (Eugene), Barbara and Ed; his nieces Claire, Catie (William), Lauren and her children Zarian and Amora. He has left an indelible mark on the lives of all who knew him and will be deeply missed by his family and many friends.
Jack was born in Elizabeth NJ and attended St. Genevieve School and Roselle Catholic High School. He pursued an Accounting degree at Kean College and completed training for his career with the Union County Sheriff’s Office at the John H. Stamler Police Academy. He served his community for over 25 years as a Union County Sherriff’s officer, eventually retiring from the Court Division as a Lieutenant.
In keeping with his father’s entrepreneurial spirit, Jack invested in one of the first craft beer bars in NYC with two hometown friends and fellow beer aficionados. In 1995, d.b.a. opened and quickly became a Manhattan destination establishment which led to the opening of a second location in New Orleans in 2000. Jack was a long time cancer survivor and gratefully spent his years of remission making each day count.
He had a wide variety of interests including photography, swimming, theater, music and recently mind/body practices such as meditation, Tai Chi and acupuncture. His daily rituals of completing the crosswords puzzle and watching Jeopardy kept his mind sharp. An avid sports fan, Jack followed collegiate and professional basketball, football and also enjoyed Major League Baseball.
Summers included swimming at the Spring Lake pavilion pool, Riddle Way beach, and visits to the Manasquan inlet. For the last ten plus years, he spent winter months at his Tequesta, FL condominium where he would reconnect with some family and life-long friends from Elizabeth who also winter in the Palm Beach area. He would say “It’s just another day in paradise” when describing his time in Florida.
He spent much of his time outdoors swimming laps, taking in spring training games and walking at Constitution park or along the Jupiter river walk. Jack was a very charitable donor and would appreciate a contribution be made to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in lieu of flowers. giving.
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