John O. Rollins II

John Omberson Rollins ll was born on May 4, 1932 in Jersey City, New Jersey to John Rollins and Edythe Ebert.  Jack grew up in Wayne, New Jersey and had a younger sister, Claire which preceded him in death.  He played sports while growing up and was a good competitive swimmer which he enjoyed throughout his lifetime. After high school, he went to college in Vermont, but dropped out to enlist in the Air Force so he could become a pilot. He enlisted in the Air Force in July of 1954.  On September 25, 1954, he married Joan Shauger of Butler, New Jersey.  They were married for over 40 years and had four children and four grandchildren.

During his Air Force career, he was stationed at several bases in the United States and Asia.  He was an accomplished fighter pilot who served multiple tours of duty in Vietnam. He was the commander of the 13th Tactical Fighter Squadron based in Udorn, Thailand for a period of time. He flew 276 combat missions during his career and was highly decorated earning the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross (6 times) and the Air Medal (20 times).  He would have been considered a hero in different times but the unpopular conflict in Vietnam took a toll on many veterans who served in that war. He retired in 1973 and moved the family back to Las Vegas, Nevada.

He tried selling insurance but that was short lived. He took a job at the Union Plaza Hotel where his leadership skills were noticed by the owner, Frank Scott. This eventually led to the creation of the Nevada Development Authority which he served as the Executive Director for a few years. Having constant funding challenges which led to him resigning, he decided to move to California where he worked for Lee Roofing Company for couple of years before deciding to move back East and go back to college. After graduating from Keene State College in New Hampshire, he decided to go to law school. He graduated from Franklin Pierce Law School and was excited to get, as he called them, his Sargent’s stripes on his graduation gown.

The family moved back to California where he went to work at Boeing for several years before the government shut down the missile program that he was working on.  Jack and Joan moved briefly to Las Vegas where he worked at the Home Depot.  Upon Joan’s passing in 1995, he moved to San Diego where he worked at Cubic Corporation. After leaving that position, he moved to Costa Mesa and purchased a home.  Shortly after he met the second love of his life, Patricia Young.  They married on April 10, 1999 and spent over 23 years together before his passing on August 10, 2022.  He was buried in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Newport Beach.  We are here today to celebrate his memory with the installation of a plaque that commemorates his honorable service to our country.