Obituary of John, ‘Jack’ , ‘Jackie-John’, ‘The Great One’ Lucier

  Age 72, John ‘Jack’ Lucier passed away peacefully surrounded by close friends, Saturday, January 23, 2016, following a brief illness at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Halifax.   Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, October 28, 1943, Jack was predeceased by his parents, Robert J. Lucier and mother, Ruth A. (Mulligan).  Jack is survived by siblings Robert Lucier and his wife, Kathy, Lynda Sawyer, William Lucier, Bruce Lucier, Louann Gagnon, and Laureen Lucier and Tom Economou, as well as many beloved nieces and nephews.   Jack attended Immaculate Conception elementary school and Keith Academy in Lowell.   ‘Jackie-John’ arrived in Halifax in 1961, recruited to play varsity basketball at Saint Mary’s University.  He is acknowledged as the best one-eyed shooting guard in the Huskies storied basketball history.   Upon earning a B.A, B.Ed. and M.Ed., at Saint Mary’s, Jack began a life-long career as a professional educator in his hometown of Lowell where he taught school for seven years.  He returned to Halifax in 1973 and began a long teaching career at Lower Sackville and Eastern Shore high schools, retiring from the profession in 1999.   Jack had a lifelong passion for sports of all kinds, especially major league baseball.  In addition to basketball, Jack also enjoyed playing slow pitch softball until sidelined by injury.   He enjoyed spending his summers in Lowell with family and friends and winter holidays in Florida where he enjoyed nothing more than a night of "feeding the puppies" at the dog track.  He was self-acclaimed as being in the world’s top ten dog racing handicappers.   His close friends will forever miss Sunday afternoons at Jack’s where ‘The Great One’ would hold court while managing multiple TVs and non-stop commentary.  Jack’s hospitality was always welcoming and generous.   Jack had many friends from all walks of life and for good reason:  he was extraordinarily kind-hearted, non-judgmental, generous to a fault, sincere and true.   ‘The Great One’ ended every conversation by wishing one ‘good luck’.  In tribute to Jack, his many friends can now only respond by echoing Jack’s favourite greeting to one-and-all:  "You’re the best".   Family and friends would particularly like to acknowledge the commitment of Mickey Fox to Jack’s well-being during his recent period of health challenges.   A funeral mass will be held at Canadian Martyrs Church, 5900 Inglis Street, Halifax, NS, Friday, January 29, 2 PM.   In lieu of flowers, Jack’s friends are encouraged to make a donation in his memory to the Heart and Stroke Foundation.   "Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened." – Dr. Seuss