John Alexander Neal, 85

John Alexander Neal died peacefully at his home in Gig Harbor, Washington, on June 7, 2026, at the age of 85.

The youngest of four children, John grew up on a small family farm in Linesville, Pennsylvania, where he rode horses, raised cows, and tended fields of soybeans and corn—most often with his beagle dog Jenny by his side.

In 1960 John joined the Army and came to be stationed at Fort Lewis in Washington State. Once his service was complete, he enrolled at Eastern Washington University in Cheney and began studying chemistry. It was there he married Diane Thayer, with whom he would have two sons — John and Jason — before the decade was up. A good student, John earned his bachelor’s degree in less than three years. By then he was determined to have a career in science, so he and Diane moved to Seattle where he began pursuing a doctoral degree in chemistry at the University of Washington.

After earning his Ph.D. in 1970 John spent two years doing post-doctoral studies, then went to work at the Georgia-Pacific pulp and paper mill in Bellingham, Washington. In a few years’ time he was promoted to Director of Product Development, a position he held for nearly two decades. Eventually he went on to work for Grace-Sierra Horticultural Products Company in Milpitas, California, and then the Scotts Company in Columbus, Ohio. In 2000 he retired and returned to western Washington State.

In 2011, at the age of 71, John married Cristie Laybourn of Gig Harbor, Washington. The two enjoyed fifteen years of loving companionship. They gardened and listened to music together, spent warm summer days at the Laybourn family beach house, fostered friendships in their community, and gently buoyed one another in the autumn of their lives.

John’s career as a business leader and corporate executive took him to many far-flung places; he often reminisced about trips to Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Iceland and other exotic locales. But in his heart he was always a country kid, never more comfortable than when he was wearing his barn coat and cowboy hat, sitting around a campfire in the soggy Mt. Baker National Forest, sipping a Budweiser and swapping stories with family and friends.

John is survived by his wife Cristie Laybourn, his sons John (Melissa) Neal and Jason (Lisa) Neal, his grandson Connor Neal, as well as his stepdaughters Lea (Greg) Wright and Sara (Jon) Aqui, and their children.

A memorial will be held at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Gig Harbor, WA, on Tuesday, July 7 starting at 1 p.m.