Known to most as John Dennis (born Jackie Joseph Goonan—but eternally Jack Dennis) passed away peacefully on March 12th, just shy of his 92nd birthday; surrounded by love, classical music, and family—including his wife of 61 years, Melanie Eastburn Dennis.  Pursuing their shared love of the theatre, John and Melanie first met at auditions for Rumpelstiltskin at a community theater in Oak Park, Illinois.  Cast in the roles of Rumpelstiltskin and the miller's daughter, they fell in love-at-first-sight and spent the rest of their lives " spinning gold out of straw" .

John Dennis came from strong Irish stock.  He was a man who loved deeply, cared strongly, and believed whole-heartedly in synchronicity.  He followed his dreams; both figuratively and literally.  He always travelled on the road less taken which was what made his life the grand adventure that it was.  He enjoyed the journey of living and reveled in the possibility, promise, and potential of every encounter.  With each idea, interaction, and project, he strove to leave an indelible mark on his communities, and make the world a better place.  John believed in the goodness of others and always sought to see people's good qualities and give them the benefit of the doubt.  He saw and understood that we are only as strong as our connections to each other.  He would often say how lucky he was to have the family and devoted friends he had, and what a blessing his life was—he perpetually felt like the luckiest man in the world.

John was the oldest of 5 and adored each of his 4 siblings dearly.  He treasured most being the father of his 6 children whom he cherished, loved, and cared for so completely and with every fiber of his body and soul; and fully embraced their chosen husbands, wives, and partners as the Dennis Clan grew.  And he will forever be the "Papa" of 13 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren who were his everything and for whom he unfailingly generated adventures, whimsy, far-fetched tall-tales, and endless silly songs.  He found and created, magical moments and places.  And his sense of humor, curiosity, creativity, joy, awe, empathy, and capacity for boundless-caring will live on through all of them.

John was a phenomenal whistler, a master pumpkin-carver, and an avid lawn-game player.  He swore by his daily calisthenics and his cheater's-diet.  (He never met a dessert he didn't like.)  He had a hearty, contagious laugh.  He relished in mischief and tomfoolery.  He was funny, witty, and a pun-master.  He had an uncanny sense of direction.  And his penmanship was second-to-none.

Born in Manchester, New Hampshire, John moved to Connecticut, Chicago, Maine, Vermont, Indiana, and eventually landed back in Vermont for good in 2016.  His list of professional endeavors and accomplishments are too many to name, but he was a prolific writer—memoirs, poems, political speeches, musical productions, marketing for various health, youth, and senior organizations and initiatives, and countless children's books, plays, and animated-shorts.  As a jack of all trades and master of some, he worked many odd and wildly varied jobs and careers while honing and pursuing his writing craft; eventually earning his PhD in Communications and Social Marketing from Union Institute later in life.  Writing was John's lifeblood, and his wife, Melanie, was his muse, editor, costumer, actress, accountant, cheerleader, critic, and biggest supporter every step of the way.  If you lived in Johnson VT, you likely saw them strolling regularly through town, arm-in-arm, and that is the way they walked through life.  John would often attribute his successes and longevity to his devoted wife.  Sharing John's belief in the transformative power of story, Melanie watched over him all their years together, knowing he would rather write than eat or sleep; fostering infinite space and time to envision, explore, and create.  They both held the importance of seeing the magic in the world and dedicated their lives to forever growing the circle of love that started with the two of them and encompassed their collective families, their children and their children's families, and countless numbers of friends, colleagues, community members of all sorts, and acquaintances.  Their love was vast and their hope was deep, and collectively that is their shared legacy.

Jackie, Jack, John, John darling, Dad, Grampy, Papa will be missed; there's just no way around that. But he will be remembered and celebrated as a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle, son, father-figure to many, and dedicated friend.  Even if you weren't fortunate enough to know him, please know that the world is a better place because he was in it for his time.

We would be remiss not to acknowledge the tremendous resource John and our family had access to during the last 6 months of his life.  The collective compassion, kindness, professionalism, and patience of every staff member of Lamoille Home Health and Hospice made all the difference in allowing us to honor and care for John at-home to the very end.

Because John dedicated most of his life and writing-career to advocating and creating for kids and seniors we are asking (in lieu of flowers) for donations to be made in his name to Lamoille Home Health and Hospice, or the Lamoille Family Center, or any local-to-you child or senior-centered organization of your choice.

A celebration of Life will be held on a future date when the family can make plans and arrangements.