John Jacob Egenolf, known as “Jack” to his family, was born on May 24, 1942, and passed away on November 20, 2025, at the age of 83.

Jack grew up in San Mateo with his parents, Mayre and Jacob, and a much older brother, George, who was away at Stanford when Jack was born. He was only twelve when his father died of cancer, followed by the loss of his only sibling, George, who died in a scuba accident when Jack was seventeen. Thereafter, Jack devoted much of his life to caring for his mother, Mayre.

He attended Santa Clara University, a Catholic institution, where he was active in student politics and played football. Guided by his strong Catholic faith, Jack seriously considered the priesthood before ultimately earning an MBA, and later a PhD in Mathematical Theory at the University of California, Riverside, specializing in statistics.

Jack began his career in business, working at technology companies including Hewlett-Packard and GTE. He soon discovered, however, that teaching was his true calling and was thrilled when he became a Professor of Statistics at the University of Alaska Anchorage and later at Oregon State University, where he taught until his first retirement.

An avid skier, Jack spent school breaks in South Lake Tahoe, where his restlessness and love of teaching led him to additional faculty roles at the University of Nevada, Reno. He eventually returned to Alaska, rejoining the University of Alaska—this time in Fairbanks—which became his favorite home. Even after “retiring” many times, Jack always seemed to return to teaching part-time at the University of Alaska Fairbanks until his death. Wherever Jack lived, he formed deep and lasting friendships.

Jack’s older brother George, was an OB/GYN in San Diego, which is why their mother, Mayre went to the Scripps Clinic there for her medical care. Jack was impressed by Scripps as he accompanied her on appointments, so later chose it for his own medical care as well, despite the inconvenience of the location. In late 2025, while being treated in Fairbanks for lymphoma complicated by a fractured hip, Jack elected to travel to Scripps for care. Unfortunately, his condition was far more serious than he realized and declined very rapidly; he ultimately refused further treatment and passed away two days later.

Jack remained steadfast in his Catholic faith and received last rites at Scripps. He wished for his ashes to remain in Fairbanks, along the banks of the Chena River. A memorial gathering will be held on May 24, 2026. For details, please contact Gail Alaimo at gailandedalaimo at gmail. In lieu of sending flowers, please consider a donation to the Fairbanks Native Association in Jack’s honor https://www.fairbanksnative.org/