John S. Ratcliff

John S. Ratcliff Of Huntingtown, MD. Born on Sept. 3, 1933 to Henry and Margaret Ratcliff of Mohegan, WV. Passed away on Jan. 2, 2013 at the age of 79. He is the beloved husband of Caroline Munaretto Ratcliff and the loving father of John S. Ratcliff, Jr. He is also survived by his siblings Angelo (Geraldine) Ratcliff, Cruiz (Lucille) Soto and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents. Mr. Ratcliff enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1952. While stationed at Scott Field AFB, Cheyenne, WY in 1953 he obtained his G.E.D. He then furthered his education by training in Cryptography, Teletype, Radio and Telephone in Belleville, Ill. Then in 1969 he attended the New York Institute of Finance and became a Licensed Stock Broker with the New York Stock Exchange in New York, NY. He went on to become the chief operations manager with DRS. After leaving the financial world, John briefly worked for Reuter's News Service. Mr. Ratcliff then went to work as a trainman with Norfolk Southern Railway until his retirement in 1993. During his lifetime John was a world traveler. While serving with the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War he traveled through Germany, Italy, Malta, Libya, Greece and Turkey. After leaving the military he continued to travel and visited Jamaica, Bahamas, New Mexico and several other places throughout the United States. Mr. Ratcliff has many artistic talents which included playing the piano and dancing. He was inducted with his wife, Caroline, into the National Boppers Hall of Fame, a national dance organization in 2001. He was known as a smooth dancer and became Vice President of the Maryland Hand Dance Club for a number of years and was head of numerous committees. In his 20’s John like to box. However in the later years John was an avid reader and fisherman. Friends will be received on Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2013 from 2-4 and 6-8 pm at Lee Funeral Home Calvert, P.A., 8200 Jennifer Lane (Route 4 and Fowler Road) Owings, MD 20736; where funeral services will be held on Wed. Jan. 16, 2012 at 11:00am. Interment with military honors following in Maryland Veterans’ Cemetery, Cheltenham, Maryland. Memorial Contributions may be made in John’s Honor to Dare to C.A.R.E. Foundation: 2002 Medical Parkway, Sajak Pavilion, Suite 520, Annapolis, MD 21401 To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of John S. Ratcliff please visit our Sympathy Store.