John "Jack" Nicholas Ralston III

Vibrant to the very end, John "Jack" Nicholas Ralston III was raking leaves in his yard on Saturday, Oct. 21st when he unexpectedly fell and broke a vertebra in his neck. Jack held onto life long enough for his six children and some of his 15 grandchildren to gather to say goodbye.

Jack was born in New York City on July 4th, 1929. He was raised in a suburb of Chicago, one of eight children of John Nicholas Ralston II and his wife Margreta. Jack graduated from Purdue University with a degree in Chemical Engineering in 1952. He married his grammar school sweetheart, Jeannette Marie Gabbani, on June 16, 1951.

In 1952, Jack and Jeannette moved to Kingsport for Jack's first post-college job at Holston Defense Corporation. In 1954, he transferred to Tennessee Eastman Company, working in the filter tow department. He was drafted into the Army in October 1954, stationed in Grose Ile, Michigan. Returning to Tennessee in 1956, Jack continued in the filter tow department at TEC. In 1963, TEC sent Jack to Zug, Switzerland, Eastman's European headquarters. He and Jeannette and their four children lived in Zug for four years, traveling frequently on the continent. While in Switzerland the whole family learned to ski, and spending time on the slopes became a life-long passion of Jack's.

The family returned to Kingsport in 1967 with a new member, their fifth child. Working in International Sales for TEC, Jack's territory included South America and Canada. The family was complete with the birth of their sixth child in 1969. Jack retired from TEC in 1987 and founded his own consulting firm, Ralston International Trading Associates. He and his business partners founded Mobotec, a NOx reduction technology company, which they sold in 2003.

During his lifetime, Jack traveled to every continent and he and Jeannette, both avid cyclists, made a mission of biking in every state in the country. The couple was featured several times in Rails to Trails magazine for their accomplishment. He and Jeannette loved to dance and often won dance competitions.

Jack was known for taking great joy in life and was always up for a partya€"true to his Irish roots. As the patriarch of a large extended family, he was well-remembered for his colorful toasts at family weddings and gatheringsa€"of which there were many.

He and Jeannette marked their 66th wedding anniversary this past June. To celebrate their 65th anniversary, Jack and Jeannette cycled on the Virginia Creeper Trail with their family.

Jack will be greatly missed by many for his humor, warmth and sense of fun. He is survived by his wife Jeannette and six children, John (Lisa) Nicholas Ralston IV of Newport News, Va; Janyce (Bill) Dudney of Kingsport; Jeffrey (Shirley) Ralston of Houston; Jeannie Ralston (Robb Kendrick) of Dripping Springs, Texas; Jim (Susan) Ralston of Virginia Beach, Va.; and Judi Newell of Clemson, SC. His grandchildren are Parrish Ralston (Adam Walker), John Nicholas Ralston V and Daven Ralston; Brooke (Andy) Adams, Laura (Adam) Goodwin; John (Heather) Dudney and Rachel Dudney; Alex (Leanne) Ralston, Greta (Taylor) O'Neill and Hannah Ralston; Gus and Jeb Kendrick; Jacob Ralston and Anna and Fiona Newell. He has seven great-grandchildren.

He is also survived by two younger brothers, Ken and Dick Ralston, and a younger sister, Carol Newford. He is preceded in death by two sisters, Ginny Textor and Kibby Fencl, and two brothers, Tom and Jim Ralston.

The family will receive friends on Friday, November 17, 2017, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. at St. Dominic Catholic Church. The memorial service will follow at 2:30 p.m. with Fr. Michael Cummins and Fr. Tim Drake officiating.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions can be made to St. Bernard Catholic Church, 139 Linda St, Gate City, VA 24251; St. Vincent De Paul Society at St. Dominic's Catholic Church, 2517 N. John B. Dennis Hwy, Kingsport, 37660; and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, www.stjude.org.