John is survived by his wife, Joell Downer; his children, Lisa Thomas and husband Steve, John Kern Downer and wife Linda, Beth Hickman and husband Guy, all of Hamilton, OH; grandchildren, Nicole, Ben, Tori and Nathan Thomas, Chelsea and Alec Hickman, Holly and Grant Downer. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two siblings, Sam Downer and Betsy Gergoff.