Olympian, surgeon John Emery remembered for giving back

John Emery, longtime Sonoma-based reconstructive surgeon, philanthropist and Olympic gold medalist, died Feb. 21 after an extended bout with melanoma. He was 90.

Emery was remembered this week by loved ones as a dedicated friend, husband and father who lived life to its fullest.

Or, as close friend Michael Crain put it: “The guy packed more into one life than most could in multiple lifetimes.”

John Edward Emery was born Jan. 4, 1932 in Montreal, Canada. The son of a general in the Canadian Navy, his family moved frequently throughout the Great White North, returning every summer to vacation in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where his family enjoyed an “On Golden Pond” type existence, said Emery’s wife of 40 years, Deborah.

“He loved nature,” said Deborah. “It was his catnip.”

It was a love that would last a lifetime – from the peaceful climes of Thunder Bay to the snowy hills of Innsbruck, Austria, where John competed with the Canadian bobsleigh team in the 1964 Winter Olympics. John was the “driver” in the four-man team, which included his brother Victor, that took home the gold medal. (The event would land the brothers in the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame.)

But careening down icy tracks at 90 mph was only the tip of the iceberg for John’s adventurous spirit. He was also an accomplished skier, equestrian, swimmer, distance runner, world traveler who spoke five languages and pilot, according to Deborah, who recalled several “hair shirt experiences” with John at the controls. “But he had the nerves of steel to get us through.”

It was that “never quit” attitude that made him “the brilliant surgeon he was,” she added.

John studied medicine at Queens University in Ontario and Oxford University in England, with further studies in reconstructive surgery in Glasgow, Scotland. He relocated to the Bay Area in the mid-1960s, opening his reconstructive surgery practice in San Francisco in 1967.

“He was passionate about taking care of people,” said Deborah. “(Using his) deep surgical skills in repairing and putting people back together.”

Deborah met John the year he opened his practice. She was working as a model in the city when her agent told her, “You have bags under your eyes — go see John Emery.”

“I was wowed,” she recalled upon meeting him. “Gorgeous, smart, charming and then some.”

But also a “simple, loving, caring and just beautiful human being through and through.”

John and Deborah married Oct. 17, 1981.

Meanwhile, John’s plastic surgery practice flourished — serving hundreds of clients throughout the Bay Area and beyond.

Inspired by the happiness he brought to patients, granddaughter McKenzie Mock is studying to become a nurse. She recalled being in awe when visiting his practice as a young girl.

“I remember seeing people going out of surgery with a smile on their face because they felt better about their bodies,” said McKenzie, 23. “He had healing hands. He had that magic touch.”

In 1985, John and Deborah purchased an estate overlooking Sonoma on Gehricke Road, where they planted vineyards, started a winery and raised Arabian horses. Crain, a real-estate agent specializing in wineries, met John in 2008 and helped the couple sell their 300-plus acre ranch. The two became fast friends.

“We were kindred spirits,” Crain said, describing it as a “deep, personal friendship.”

“But I have a feeling in John Emery’s case that (type of friendship) is not unique,” said Crain. “He had a lot of friends, from all walks of life - lords and ladies in England to just regular folks like myself.”

Several of his 907 Facebook friends concurred.

“I am forever a better person for having known you, John Emery,” posted Linda Pascual Kranzke.

Friend Dorrie Newton put it succinctly: “What a man and what a life.”

Lou Ann Hardister, a friend of 40 years, described John as “a friend to all who knew him.”

“John lived and worked with a view from a mountaintop as he soared with the eagles and broke break with the common folk,” said Hardister.

Despite an “elegant, proper upbringing,” said Deborah, John most loved the simple things – camping, kindness, humility, “never being a peacock.”

Looking back on their 46 years together, Deborah said they “were lucky enough to live fully and completely for each other, as well as elevate each other to our higher selves.”

John was diagnosed with melanoma in his early 80s, said Deborah. He kept it at bay for a good 10 years, before the cancer eventually spread. Toward the end of 2021, his prognosis was poor.

“He was gallant and such a positive person, he never let that get away the last days of his life,” she said. He spent the last few weeks of his life reaching out to friends and loved ones, and putting the finishing touches on a memoir he’d been writing.

Deborah shared his final entry, written the day before he died:

“This is the life of a man that is not much different from any other person who might be reading this book, but who had somehow a spirit of adventure that took him to many parts of the world, learned many languages and experienced many cultures and disciplines in his lifetime.

“If this can inspire anyone to carry on with a spirit of adventure and jump into living life to the fullest then I will have achieved my goal of passing this message on.”

John Emery is survived by his spouse Deborah Emery; brother Victor Emery; children John Edward Emery II, Allison Emery, Forest Meadow Spring and Tamera Mock; along with four grandchildren.

A celebration of John Emery’s life is tentatively slated for May 21. The family will provide more details as the event approaches.

Email Jason Walsh at Jason.walsh@sonomanews.com.