The Roman poet Seneca wrote that, when a friend dies, the comfort of having that friend may be gone but not the comfort of having had one. And so we remember John William Heath, our brother, friend, and classmate in Company E-2, West Point Class of 1969, whom we lost on October 18, 1975. He is gone, but the joy we have at having known him remains.
John was born on May 5, 1947 at the U.S. Navy Hospital in Quantico, VA. His father, Hank, was a Marine logistics and supply officer who had served in the Battle of Guadalcanal as well as with other campaigns in the South Pacific during World War II. His mother, Elaine, was a former Navy nurse. John had two brothers: Richard, who passed away in 1993, and James, a former Air Force officer and retired professor of management who resides in Virginia.
John came to the U.S. Military Academy from California, where he’d been raised. He chose West Point because of his father’s legacy as a Marine, but in truth John never had a military frame of mind. Although he did well academically at the Academy, he was never comfortable with the rituals and discipline of military life, as evidenced by the amount of time he spent walking the area. He was a fine man, a loyal classmate, and a great friend to those who knew him well. A physical fitness buff, John had a body-builder’s physique and was known for his natural athleticism and strength, as well as his sense of humor (he once bench-pressed one of his classmates). On the surface, he was friendly and generous and had an easy smile and clever wit, but he was also shy and sensitive and kept a part of himself hidden.
After graduation, he married his childhood sweetheart, Kathryn (Katie) Iverson, whom he had known since he was 15. Marrying Katie was one of the highpoints of his life; the other was flying. When he left West Point, he was commissioned in the United States Marine Corps and attended the USMC Officer Basic School. After basic he was sent to the Air Force flight school in Laredo, TX, where he learned to fly the T-37B Tweet and T-38 Talon. A year later, he went to Yuma to complete his training as a Marine aviator flying the A-4 Skyhawk. After receiving his wings, he was assigned to the 3rd Marine Air Wing in El Toro, CA, where he transitioned to flying the F-4 Phantom II and was qualified on the A-6 Intruder. His only overseas posting was to Japan, where he was a pilot in a photo reconnaissance squadron.
Shortly after returning from Japan, John resigned from the service and enrolled in California State Fullerton to study chemistry. His family said he wanted either to earn a doctorate in chemistry or get a master’s and teach chemistry at a high school. Unfortunately, he was not able to realize either of those goals. Throughout his life, he had battled depression, and the disease progressed to a debilitating point. He had had a difficult childhood and said in his final note that he still carried those scars and no longer had the energy to continue. His wife, Katie, noted that John “was a powerful, complex man who was a fragile child inside.”
John’s loss when he was just 28 was a tragedy to his wife and family as well as to his many friends and classmates. Those of us who knew him best remember him as the kind of person who would do anything for his friends and as a brilliant fellow with the natural gifts of intellect, athleticism, and generosity. We continue to mourn his passing but remember him with fondness, respect, and gratitude. As Irving Berlin said, “The song has ended, but the melody lingers on.”