3rd Class Petty Officer John Gray
US Navy – Electronic Technician
Ground Electronic Crew
1964-1968
US Navy – Electronic Technician
Ground Electronic Crew
1964-1968
John Gray was born in Women’s Hospital in Manhattan, NY on December 7th, 1945. John grew up in the Inwood neighborhood at the northern tip of Manhattan which at the time was an Irish enclave. His father and his uncle owned an Irish grocery store between 211th and 212th Streets on Broadway. John attended the local Catholic grammar school and he and his 4 brothers lived in a one bedroom apartment. He recalled a rite of passage was jumping into the Harlem River from the bank of the river near Columbia University where the big “C” was drawn in the rocks.
When John’s mother was expecting the 5th child the family moved to a house in Yonkers, NY. John attended the all-boys Catholic high School, Cardinal Hayes, in the Bronx. The school had close to 3,500 boys and John’s graduating class of 825+ had its graduation in St Patrick’s Cathedral.
John’s father was an immigrant from Ireland and his mother’s parents had immigrated from Ireland. His parents had a strong work ethic, and they didn’t see any value in participating in sports. John spent all his time working in either the family grocery store or a local grocery store chain.
John graduated from high school in 1963 and attended community college in Westchester, NY and took course work in construction. John wasn’t getting the marks he hoped for, so he decided to join the Navy. He thought he would see the world. John scored well on the military aptitude test, and he was given his choice of jobs and he chose Electronics Technician. He headed down to lower Manhattan for his physical and induction.
John was sent to the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. He spent 10 weeks in basic training and then began his 38 week electronic training program (ET School). John joined the Catholic choir group and volunteered for the Color Guard to occupy his spare time. At the conclusion of ET School John received orders for Naval Air Station Glyncoe, in Brunswick, Georgia. There the Navy was training F-4 pilots that would be assigned to aircraft carriers in Vietnam. John was responsible for air to ground communications. While at Glyncoe John was married to a woman who was in the Navy. After two years John received orders to Kodiak Alaska where he was in ground electronics and was responsible for the maintenance of the Armed Forces Television and Radio station. John remembers fixing the station’s antenna in -55 degree temperatures.
When he left the Navy he went to meet his wife in Utica, NY. At that time there were three GE plants and a UNIVAC plant. John put in applications at all four facilities and got a call from UNIVAC. He was hired two weeks after leaving the Navy. He worked there until the factory was deemed inefficient and management decided to close it. John was fortunate and he was transferred to another plant. They were manufacturing keypunch machines to compete with IBM. John was offered a spot with UNIVAC but it would have required relocating. His wife didn’t want to move away from her family in Utica.
John landed a local job with Mohawk Data who was manufacturing key to tape machines which was the next generation of technology. John advanced through the ranks and was offered a position in Manhattan and the family relocated. In 1973 Mohawk landed a job selling systems to the Australian Government John was offered the opportunity to go to Sidney and provide customer training.
John and his family returned to the United States in 1974 and settled in Whitesboro, NY. Unfortunately, his wife developed an alcohol problem and that led to divorce.
John continued his career in the electronics/computer industry which became more and more fluid as the pace of technology accelerated. John had a series of positions in the industry and ultimately ended up back in New York City near his family. In 1990 John earned his bachelors degree in business administration. The same year he started with the NY Telephone Company and worked with them for 24 years, retiring in 2014.
John has been actively involved volunteering with Little League Baseball for 18 years , 5 years with Pop Warner Football and 10 years with CYO Basketball. Two of John’s sons developed into excellent soccer players and were able to compete in college. John spent a lot of time driving them up and down the east coast to various competitions.
I asked John if he would join the military again. “Without a doubt I would go back and do it again.”
John is one of the unsung heroes in America who leads by example. Serving his country and using the military to give him a start in life, earning his part of the American Dream and making a life for he and his family and then giving back to the community with countless hours of volunteering. Thank you, John, for being a model citizen.
When John’s mother was expecting the 5th child the family moved to a house in Yonkers, NY. John attended the all-boys Catholic high School, Cardinal Hayes, in the Bronx. The school had close to 3,500 boys and John’s graduating class of 825+ had its graduation in St Patrick’s Cathedral.
John’s father was an immigrant from Ireland and his mother’s parents had immigrated from Ireland. His parents had a strong work ethic, and they didn’t see any value in participating in sports. John spent all his time working in either the family grocery store or a local grocery store chain.
John graduated from high school in 1963 and attended community college in Westchester, NY and took course work in construction. John wasn’t getting the marks he hoped for, so he decided to join the Navy. He thought he would see the world. John scored well on the military aptitude test, and he was given his choice of jobs and he chose Electronics Technician. He headed down to lower Manhattan for his physical and induction.
John was sent to the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. He spent 10 weeks in basic training and then began his 38 week electronic training program (ET School). John joined the Catholic choir group and volunteered for the Color Guard to occupy his spare time. At the conclusion of ET School John received orders for Naval Air Station Glyncoe, in Brunswick, Georgia. There the Navy was training F-4 pilots that would be assigned to aircraft carriers in Vietnam. John was responsible for air to ground communications. While at Glyncoe John was married to a woman who was in the Navy. After two years John received orders to Kodiak Alaska where he was in ground electronics and was responsible for the maintenance of the Armed Forces Television and Radio station. John remembers fixing the station’s antenna in -55 degree temperatures.
When he left the Navy he went to meet his wife in Utica, NY. At that time there were three GE plants and a UNIVAC plant. John put in applications at all four facilities and got a call from UNIVAC. He was hired two weeks after leaving the Navy. He worked there until the factory was deemed inefficient and management decided to close it. John was fortunate and he was transferred to another plant. They were manufacturing keypunch machines to compete with IBM. John was offered a spot with UNIVAC but it would have required relocating. His wife didn’t want to move away from her family in Utica.
John landed a local job with Mohawk Data who was manufacturing key to tape machines which was the next generation of technology. John advanced through the ranks and was offered a position in Manhattan and the family relocated. In 1973 Mohawk landed a job selling systems to the Australian Government John was offered the opportunity to go to Sidney and provide customer training.
John and his family returned to the United States in 1974 and settled in Whitesboro, NY. Unfortunately, his wife developed an alcohol problem and that led to divorce.
John continued his career in the electronics/computer industry which became more and more fluid as the pace of technology accelerated. John had a series of positions in the industry and ultimately ended up back in New York City near his family. In 1990 John earned his bachelors degree in business administration. The same year he started with the NY Telephone Company and worked with them for 24 years, retiring in 2014.
John has been actively involved volunteering with Little League Baseball for 18 years , 5 years with Pop Warner Football and 10 years with CYO Basketball. Two of John’s sons developed into excellent soccer players and were able to compete in college. John spent a lot of time driving them up and down the east coast to various competitions.
I asked John if he would join the military again. “Without a doubt I would go back and do it again.”
John is one of the unsung heroes in America who leads by example. Serving his country and using the military to give him a start in life, earning his part of the American Dream and making a life for he and his family and then giving back to the community with countless hours of volunteering. Thank you, John, for being a model citizen.