Jack Webb

John "Jack" Webb was born in 1942 in Connecticut. His parents, Henry and Alice Webb were adventurous souls which would be inherited by their children Jack, Eugenie, and David. The Webb family moved to Samoa in the South Pacific when Jack was in his teens. He spent his time between there and boarding school in Auckland, New Zealand. After traveling with his sister through SE Asia, he moved to Boston to attend Boston University.  Jack settled in Boston, MA., was the bachelor of the month in the Boston Globe, before meeting and marrying Nancy in 1972. The adventure continued as they traveled the world together. They started their family in 1977 welcoming Justin, followed by Brandon, and finally Whitney. The Webb kids had three homes growing up -  Boston, Boca Raton (1991), and airplanes. The World Wide Webbs (dubbed by Justin) squeezed out all of the free travel benefits possible from  Nancy's employment with Delta. No family vacation ever went as planned, but there were always stories to tell and adaptability became ingrained in all.  

Along with globe-trotting, Jack's favorite thing was his family. His sister Eugenie and brother David were a large part of his life along with his nieces Sarah, Valerie, Kate, and Emily and his nephew Matt. There were many summer trips to Lucca, with the cousins, aunts, uncles, and friends joining in. Renting an old camp in Maine one summer to celebrate Jack’s 50th birthday was another highlight trip with his extended family. Frequent family trips to visit his father on the island of Bequia, in the Grenadines, always included several of the family members. Jack was very close with his in-laws, Betty and Bill who often traveled with them, as well as His sister-in-law Cindy and his niece and nephew Kristen and Jason.    

Jack was positive and present throughout his life during ups and downs. He always had a smile, didn't think there was much worth taking seriously, and expected that more good things were always on the way. His intelligence and near-perfect memory never faded throughout his 78 years, but he didn't take that too seriously either and was often referred to as the absentminded professor by his family.   

To his three kids, he was the perfect dad. From a young age, they discussed how they knew they had lucked out with both parents. Because of their trust, humor, acceptance, and just being cool people, the five Webbs were always friends by choice. Jack had a sort of blind trust and confidence in his children which, again, led to a lot of good stories as they grew up. The house in Estancia West in Boca Raton was home to more than a few parties and infamous "stair jumping." But it was Jack and Nancy who encouraged the open door policy, literally and figuratively, and they played honorary parents to many young people who came through those doors. Jack had a way of keeping the peace, diffusing teenage angst, and encouraging adventures while always keeping everyone safe. He never put unwanted expectations on his kids, instead, he repeatedly stated his confidence in them and assured them "you can't really make mistakes in life before you turn 30", a sentiment that would move to age 35, and beyond as the kids got older. In summary, the kids could do no wrong, and the feeling was mutual towards him.   

When Justin unexpectedly died in 2015, the world stopped for the Webbs. There is no way to optimistically move through a loss of that magnitude, but Jack managed it with calmness and grace. For 20 years, Jack was a founding trustee of the Ruth and Hal Launders Charitable Trust, a family foundation whose mission is to grant money to vulnerable populations and their support systems. Along with making hundreds of grants worldwide with his fellow trustees, Jack worked with a local non-profit, Boca Helping Hands, to establish a job readiness program to be housed in the Justin D. Webb Training Center. While some situations in life have no silver linings, the establishment of this center in Justin's name carries forward the friendship and humanity that was embodied in Jack's son.   

Jack was 78 years old, and while his family always encouraged him to break 90, they are so proud of his fight, but more importantly of his life. One of the greatest gifts he gave was his steadfast positivity through the challenges in his later life. Even through pain and uncertainty he smiled, joked, and planned for the future. This gift allowed his family to enjoy every minute they had with him, and while they wanted so much more, they are at peace, along with him, and will strive to live their lives with the same presence, levity, and hope.   

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Boca Helping Hands in Honor of Jack Webb and the Justin Webb Training Center.