<p><em>John Bellis O’Dowd</em> was born on March 27, 1956 to John and Eleanor O’Dowd of Bergenfield, NJ. He grew up there with his sister, Kathy, and brothers, William and Daniel. John excelled in academics, wrestling and band at Bergenfield High School, graduating in 1974. Nominated by Congressman Henry Helstoski for the Class of 1978, John passed through Thayer Gate and reported to the Man in the Red Sash with his classmates on July 8, 1974, joining the Corps of Cadets as a member of 4th New Cadet Company for Beast Barracks, 3rd Company, “The Wild Bunch,” for summer training at Camp Buckner, and companies H-4 and H-3 during the academic years.<br />John was “larger than life.” Physically imposing, his booming voice, signature laugh, infectious sense of humor and energy ensured that he dominated any room. John wrestled heavyweight for Army in each of his four years, and while he would insist that he was “not the best wrestler on the team” his teammates remember that he made everyone else better through his dedication and effort. John was gifted with an intellect that allowed him to excel in academics with little effort, giving him time to roam the barracks in search of mischief. Always kind of heart, he was quick to assist others struggling in class or on the fields of friendly strife. <br />Graduating on June 7, 1978, John was commissioned into the Corps of Engineers and began a long career of leadership and service to the nation. Early assignments at Fort Bragg, NC in combat and topographic engineer units developed the leadership and technical expertise that marked John’s later career. He led soldiers in infrastructure development and foreign aid deployments to Central America and served as an operations and executive officer at battalion and brigade levels in CONUS, during Operation “Uphold Democracy” (Haiti), and in Korea. He also served as deputy public works officer at Fort Bragg, placing him among a select group of Army Engineers with broad combat, topographic, and public works experience. <br />John sought intellectual growth too. He attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, earned master’s degrees in applied mathematics and environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins University, served at West Point as associate professor of environmental engineering, studied at the Army War College and was an Army Fellow at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.<br />All of John’s leadership and engineering skills were called into action on 9/11. As commander of the New York Engineer District, he oversaw the Army Corps of Engineers’ water resource development, navigation and regulatory activities including New York harbor and Long Island. On 9/11, John led the efforts to quickly mobilize watercraft to evacuate approximately 3,000 people from a devastated Manhattan to safe zones in Brooklyn, New Jersey and Staten Island. His command was instrumental in the rescue and recovery effort, including dredging the port to accommodate barges removing the massive amounts of debris from Ground Zero and building a site to sift for human remains and personal effects.<br />John served in combat as the first commander of the Afghanistan Engineer District, responsible for the complex construction of infrastructure, life support, training ranges and major facilities that supported the U.S. mission of training the Afghan National Army. As the senior engineer in country, he was also staff engineer for the Combined Forces Commander, responsible for all related engineering activity for DoD. <br />John’s final assignment for the Army was as chief of staff, U.S. Military Staff Committee at the United Nations in New York City. In this role, he served as the military advisor to the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. There he also met Francesca, a European Union delegate to the UN, during negotiations on peacekeeping. Their friendship, born of lively discussion on subjects ranging from the war on terror to the political parallels between the EU and the USA, eventually led to a very happy marriage. John retired from the Army in 2006 after 28 years of remarkable service to his country. <br />Though he loved his Army career, John’s boundless curiosity made him equally excited about embarking on the next chapter of his working life, in the construction industry, leveraging his federal engineering and leadership expertise. One experience with huge significance for John during this time was being involved in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site in lower Manhattan. <br />When John died on January 26, 2010 while traveling as Vice President of New York City-based STV Corporation, he was very content. With Francesca and daughter Katie, he had set up home in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, convenient both for his beloved Fort Hamilton Commissary and the close NYC friendships John had cemented in the dark days following 9/11. <br />John’s selfless service has twice been memorialized by the Corps of Engineers since his death: in 2010, with the dedication of Afghanistan Engineer District-North’s new dining facility at the Qalaa House Compound in Kabul and, in 2012, with a plaque marking completion of the Gerritsen Creek ecosystem restoration project in Brooklyn. The latter honored both John’s leadership of the District following 9/11 and his key support as commander for the environmental mission that helped initiate that project. <br />People were John’s focus, and his family were most important of all. Surviving John are his wife, Francesca; daughters Elizabeth and Katie and son Scott; his brothers, William and Daniel; and his sister, Kathy. His positive outlook, warmth and kindness made the world a better place. Well Done, John. Be Thou at Peace.<br /><em>— Mark O’Neill ’78, Francesca Riddy-O’Dowd, and classmates</em></p>