Dr. John Ellis Allen, 90, passed away Friday, April 12, 2019, in Williamsburg. He was born Dec. 11, 1928, in Dothan, Alabama, to Ellis and Cleo Allen.
John graduated from high school in Dothan, Alabama. He attended the College of Music of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he received a certificate in piano; the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he received a Bachelor of Science Education Degree; Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, where he received of a Master of Science Education Degree; and Ohio State University, where he received Doctor of Philosophy Degree.
John served in the U.S. Army with the 899th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion 28th Infantry Division in Germany from January 1953 to June 1954.
John’s career included school music teacher, Lewisburg, Ohio; superintendent of Monroe Township Schools, Ohio; deputy school superintendent, Newark, Del.; area school superintendent, New Castle County, Delaware; superintendent of Williamsburg-James City County Schools, Williamsburg; and executive director of The Governor’s School for the Arts, Norfolk.
John’s special interests included music, travel, reading and genealogy. He sang in the Williamsburg Choral Guild for more than 10 years and he and his wife, Helen, were frequent attendees at Virginia Opera and chamber music programs. For a number of years, they traveled to New York City to attend the Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic concerts and concerts at Carnegie Hall. They also enjoyed traveling throughout the United States, Europe, China and Egypt. John was an avid reader; he particularly enjoyed reading biographies of American political figures, especially U.S. presidents, as well as those of business and industrial personalities. John was a member of St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Williamsburg.
John married Helen Kreitzer in 1955 in Lewisburg, Ohio. They were happily married for 64 years. He is survived by his wife, Helen, of Williamsburg; two children, Barbara of Henrico and David of Williamsburg; grandchildren, Helen, John and Joshua; great-grandchildren, Benjamin and Jeffrey; and nephew, Ray Allen of Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Family and friends are invited to attend a memorial service at 11 a.m, Saturday, April 20, at St. Stephen Lutheran Church, 612 Jamestown Road, Williamsburg. A reception in the Fellowship Hall will follow services. His remains will be interred at a later date in the family plot at Sugar Grove Cemetery, New Lexington, Ohio.
For those who wish to make a memorial contribution, please consider St. Stephen Lutheran Church, 612 Jamestown Road, Williamsburg, VA 23185; or The Governor’s School for the Arts, 254 Granby St., Norfolk, VA 23510.
Share online condolences with the family at Bucktrout of Williamsburg Funeral Service.
