Jack King was born on June 3, 1928, and passed away quietly in his sleep on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2015, at the age of 87.
King, a lifelong bachelor, is survived by his twin brother, William Thomas Glover King; Tom’s wife Nancy; five nieces and nephews; and 20 great and great-great nieces and nephews.
Laguna Beach was King’s home for 70 years. He retired at age 62 from Bushard’s Pharmacy, where he worked as a stockman for 40 years.
Jack was raised in Charleston, S.C. He spent his young childhood with his parents and twin brother on a farm that his father managed in Walterboro, S.C. All things changed for Jack at the age of 6, when he lost his father. Jack, along with his brother, then went to reside in the Charleston Orphan House at the age of 9. To many children this would have been difficult, but to Jack it was a welcome experience of love and happiness. During his stay at the Orphanage he learned discipline, how to get along with others, manners, Christian values and most important in his life, lessons from the Bible.
At age 16, Jack traveled along with his brother to Laguna to join his newly remarried mother and stepfather, where at his mother’s request, Jack took his stepfather’s name of King.
King remained rooted in his love of all things southern – fried chicken, cornbread and, of course, sweet tea. He may have grown up in Charleston and then worked at Bushard’s, but his real job was public relations man for the town of Laguna Beach, which he loved dearly. He truly did have thousands of friends and couldn’t walk down a street in Laguna without being greeted by every walk of life.
King gave of himself freely and loved all. He was very active in his church as well as in his community participating many years in the city’s parade, backstage at the Pageant of the Masters for over 15 years and was a regular at the Senior Center. But his greatest pleasure was the time he spent down on “his bench” on Main Beach in front of the lifeguard tower, in his signature beach hat and sunglasses, visiting with all his friends and sharing of himself and his stories.
He cherished the times spent with family and loved taking many trips back to his beloved Charleston and to other locations, including Israel and Rome.
King undoubtedly was blessed with the gift of gab, had a great sense of humor and an infectious laugh, but his true gift was that of an intent listener and an understanding heart. King clearly understood adversity and smiled right back. He will be truly missed by all.
Services will be held at McCormick and Sons in Laguna Woods on Friday, Aug. 21, with viewing at 11:30 a.m. and a chapel service at 12:30 p.m.
A memorial service will also be held at Kingsfield Church in Aliso Viejo on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 9:30 a.m.
