I’ve received a message from Nancy Jelinek, John’s wife, to share with the forum. Nancy can access private messages as well as the Forum here, should anyone wish to join me in sending their condolences, sharing memories of John’s grace and generosity and wishing her well. Thank you. Kim
My husband John died Tuesday, March 14, at home, one and a half days after he was released from the hospital for Hospice care. We had over a year after his bladder cancer diagnosis in November of 2015 to prepare for his passing. He bought us a new car, arranged for new gas inserts to be installed in our fireplaces, and bought a new water heater. We were able to get our wills updated and signed. He gave away our old car and his beloved pickup to my brother.
The Rose Hybridizers Forum kept him interested in life. Whenever I went near the computer he insisted that I look up the rose forum first before I did anything else, to see if anyone had responded to one of his posts or if there was anything new he would like to comment on. I was impressed with how congenial the rose growers are. They always had something encouraging or educational to share, never anything mean or critical. Gardeners and nursery men are usually kind and gentle, just like John. We had 35 years of very happy marriage, sharing many interests. He was a strong Christian and it gives me peace to know he is in heaven. We had a beautiful memorial service at my church and they gave many tributes to his generosity in sharing roses with everybody.
I will be maintaining his beautiful gardens. When I give away roses it’s handy to let people look up on Help Me Find to see what they look like and their characteristics. I won’t be hybridizing, just pruning, weeding, feeding etc.
My condolences go out to you Nancy, he will be greatly missed. He had a great vision with his rose breeding and I will miss seeing his reports and Photographs of his creations.
Warren Millington
It is a strange thing the way one might come to know folks on the forum so “well” when, in fact, you frequently know so little. There have been many here whose relative age or even gender I have not known, even as I grew to view them as “friends”. But I have known them from their generosity, their intellect, and humor.
John was one such person, whom I knew to always be very generous and helpful. I have been an off-and-on visitor to the forum in recent years, and I only learned of John’s illness from a post on February 15, and I was very dismayed to learn of it. With the spring flush of roses just around the corner, I truly believed, he would find strength to carry on to dabble in the pollen another day.
I am very sad to learn of his passing, and my thoughts are with you, Nancy, and all of his loved ones.
Hello Nancy,
With great sorrow I received the passing of John. I’ve met many wonderful people on the RHA forum. You and John
are at the top of the list. Over the years you’ve generously shared seeds and pollen of your creations with me.Thank you.
I hope that the legacy of beautiful roses created by John are offered to the public in the near future.
chuckp
Nancy,
I hope that it helps you and all of John’s other family and friends to know that we are all thinking of you.
John’s sharing of his rose work has brought us all so much enjoyment.
Sometimes, we don’t get the chance to really know the stories behind the friends we see here on the forum. So thanks especially for your beautiful and touching note that Kim shared with us. You and John have been great friends and inspirations to us.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
Tom
I’m very sad to log on today and read about John’s passing. We had some very nice correspondences and he was a very generous man who shared many cuttings and seeds from his collection of beautiful roses. Please accept my condolences to you and your family. You will be in the thoughts of many of us here on the forum.