John D. Orr

February 8, 1930 - March 17, 2026

Beloved husband of Diane Orr

John D. Orr of Newtown, PA, passed away at age 96 on March 17, 2026. Born February 8, 1930 in Abington, PA and grew up in Newtown, graduated from George School, and retired to Pennswood Village. A graduate of Cornell University with an engineering degree, he served in the US Navy, was a veteran of the Korean War (Captain, USNR), and managed facilities engineering and construction at the General Electric Missile and Space Division (later GE Aerospace) in Valley Forge, PA.

John joined a construction management consulting firm (O’Brien-Kreitzberg & Associates) and managed projects for the Trenton US Federal Courthouse Annex and Historical Renovation, Ramapo College, the Philadelphia City Hall Tower, the renovation of Collins Hall in Merchantville, NJ, as well as the expansion of his home church, First Presbyterian Church of Willow Grove, PA. His international experience included managing the expansion of the Shomal Cement Company in Iran (1979). He provided expert testimony for construction claims and dispute resolution in a broad range of cases, including one involving construction of LNG tanker ships, and another related to an offshore oil and gas platform.

John remained active in retirement, serving his US Navy destroyer shipmates as chaplain of the yearly reunions and editor of the Flank Speed newsletter. He was a member of the George School Committee for many years, and he maintained a family tradition of supporting the Dalmatian Club of America, presenting the Homiller Memorial Trophy (Best of Breed) at their National Specialty show every year since 1954.

John is survived by his wife, Diane Siesel Orr and his three children, John, Robert and Gary and two stepsons, thirteen grandchildren, four step grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by his first wife, Lenore Meyer Orr.

A memorial service, led by Pastor Mindy Campbell of the First Presbyterian Church of Warminster, will be held at 9:30 Friday, May 22 at Pennswood Village, 1382 Newtown-Langhorne Road, Newtown, Pa. A private interment will follow the service.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be directed to John’s favorite charities:

·      George School Advancement Office  [georgeschool.org]

·      Dalmatian Club of America Foundation  [dcaf.org]

·      “Friends of the Judge’s Shack” of Island Beach State Park, NJ  [thejudgesshack.org]