ELIOT - John P. Dougherty of Eliot, 78, passed away peacefully at Portsmouth Regional Hospital on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2015. John, known as "Jack", was born Jul. 13, 1937. He grew up in a tightly-knit neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA called Germantown with his parents, John and Katherine, and his three siblings, Mary, Joseph and Ann, all of whom pre-deceased him. He graduated from LaSalle High School and performed course-work at Villanova University. In May of 1959, he moved to the Seacoast Region to take a six-week job at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. He loved the area and never left. He was an Engineering Technician working in the Planning and Nuclear Departments at the Shipyard, primarily focused on the operation of nuclear submarines. He capped his career in the defense industry at age 75 at the Dover, NH office of Rite-Solutions, Inc. Jack and his wife, Rose, who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this year on Oct. 2, raised their family in Eliot. Their four children, Rosemarie, John, Paul and Kathleen, all went on to graduate from Marshwood High School before going on to college. Jack was an active participant in Eliot politics. He was a strong advocate of education funding at Town Meetings. He also was a lay leader at St. Raphael's Church in Kittery. Over his decades of service to the congregation, he served as Lector, Eucharistic Minister, Parish Council member, and as part of the initial Cluster Council for the Parish of the Ascension of the Lord. Jack enjoyed bridging religious faiths and participating in Ecumenical services. On occasion, he attended services at the First Congregational Church in Eliot and functions at the Green Acre Baha'i Center in Eliot. He proudly attended the Jewish Bar Mitzvah of his grandson in 2014. Jack was a vocal advocate of same-sex marriage and helped champion the "Yes" vote on Maine Question 1, which passed in 2012. As he was quoted as saying in a news story at the time, "I believe God is love and every couple, regardless of sexual orientation should be able to share in all of the same civil benefits of marriage that I have." After going through open heart surgery, Jack helped co-found a local chapter of the Mended Hearts program at Portsmouth Regional Hospital in 2008. Through visitation, education seminars and support services, the program brings hopefulness to patients in the hospital who are facing heart surgery and recovering from heart surgery. Since 2008, the small volunteer group of former open heart surgery patients has made over 10,000 visits to heart patients at the Portsmouth Regional Hospital's Heart and Lung Center. Jack is survived by his wife Rose Marie (nee Behan), his daughter Rosemarie and her husband Tom Donnelly, his son John and his wife Victoria Dougherty, his son Paul and his wife Katie Dougherty, and his daughter Kathleen and her wife Barb Dunham. He also is survived by his seven grandchildren, whom he loved to take out to breakfast by himself every summer at the Goldenrod Restaurant in York Beach, ME. They are: Elizabeth Donnelly, Aidan Donnelly, Russell Dougherty, James Dougherty, Molly Dougherty, Finnegan Dougherty-Dunham and Gwendolyn Dougherty-Dunham. SERVICES: Friends are invited to visit with Jack's family on Sunday Oct. 25, from 5-8 p.m., in the JS Pelkey Funeral Home, 125 Old Post Road, Kittery, ME 03904. A funeral service will be held on Monday Oct. 26 at 11 am at the First Congregational Church, 1361 State Road, Eliot, ME 03903. Burial will follow at the Brooks Memorial Park and Cemetery, 1129 State Road, Eliot, ME 03903. Online condolences may be made by visiting www.jspelkeyfuneralhome.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Jack's memory to Prebble Street, a social services organization based in Portland that provides food pantry and shelter services to people in need. Donations should be addressed to Prebble Street, 38 Preble Street, Portland, ME, 04101.