Jack Ross
Information Page

Jack Ross was born at the San Diego Naval Hospital during a period when his father was in the US Navy.  His real name is John William Ross III (named after his father) but, to avoid confusion, was nicknamed Jack at a very young age and he continue to use that name today.

Jack Ross has one brother Joseph V.H. and one sister, Nancy (Delaplane).

Growing up as a child of a career Naval Officer had him on the move.  He went to primary school (K-3) at Mary Calcott Elementary in Norfolk, VA and upper elementary (1957-1959) in a Dept. of Defense (DOD) school in Yokosuka, Japan.

7th, 8th and 9th grades (1960-62) were spent in San Francisco.  He lived on the Presidio, near the Golden Gate Bridge and went to Presidio Junior High (which is now Presidio Middle School) for 7th and 8th grades and Washington High School, across the street for the 9th grade.  He was on the Washington (Eagles) Swim Team as a backstroker and placed 3rd all city in Spring of 1962.

From there it was back to Japan.  Jack lived in a small beach town called Hayama and rode the bus daily to high school in Yokohama.  The school is called Nike C. Kinnick H.S. but many still fondly know it as "Yo-Hi".  He was a junior in 1963 and a senior in 1964.  Those were really some fun times!  Jack was senior class vice president and a member of the swimming and track team.

In the fall of 1964 Jack Ross started studies in Electrical Engineering at San Diego State University.  He lived in the dorm (Taraztec Hall) for the first year and apartments after that.   One of his favorite apartments was Scott Plaza on 55th street.  

One of the reasons he chose going to SDSU was the proximity to the surf.  Jack learned to surf in Hawaii and rode some very big waves there in the 60's.  Those good old days were great as the breaks were un crowded and the vibes were very good, even in Hawaii.   During the summers of his college years Jack worked as a Del Mar Lifeguard in Del Mar, California and surfed a lot. At left, Jack Ross surfing a glassy wave at Cardiff Reef, California.

He graduated from SDSU in Feb. of 1969 and went to work at Autonetics, a division of North American Rockwell in Anaheim, CA.  Some friends called him a real Rocket Scientist as he worked on the upper stage of the Minuteman III defensive missile.   He lived on St. Ann's St. in Laguna Beach while working as an engineer and had a 40 minute commute to and from work.

Jack didn't particularly care for engineering so quit after a year and a half and went on a fantastic journey with a backpack, overland to the tip of South America.  During that journey which lasted for about 7 months, he met many people and shared some wonderful experiences.  One was a wild journey down a tributary of the Amazon on a homemade raft with Phil Cannon, a fellow traveler.  This was 1971 and, during this trip, Jack was living off $7/day

From there Jack went to Europe and hooked up with some other friends.  They purchased an old VW Bus (it was the hippie years after all) and toured Europe and northern Africa.  That segment lasted for another 3 months.

Upon his return, he went back into lifeguarding and continued his studies at SDSU for a teaching credential.  He received additional degrees in Physical Science and Mathematics and a standard secondary teaching credential in 1975.  On Feb. 15, 1975 he got married to a fine lady named Evie Worth.  In May of '75, the two of them lit out for a round-the-world trip.  Seven months in Europe and six months in Asia, overland.  Another wonderful experience!

Upon their return in 1976, Jack found work as a science teacher at Lincoln Junior High in Oceanside, CA.  He taught there for six years then spent a year as a science resource teacher with the San Diego County Office of Education.  It was his job to help elementary teachers be unafraid of teaching science and improve the quality of science instruction in their school.  The intensity of teaching and his commitment to the job cost him his marriage with Evie.

In May of 1984, Jack started a company called Insights Visual Productions, Inc.  His business partner, Erin Rockwell had the business knowledge and he had the science knowledge.  IVP, Inc. produced science videos which were marketed to schools nationwide.  It was a successful business and over the years produced 33 titles.  Erin left Insights in the 90's but the videos are still sold to schools and can be seen here.  Jack maintained the video business for about 15 years and throughout most of that time had a single trusty employee, Diana Glynn.  1985 was the last year he lifeguarded for the City of Del Mar, 20 years as a seasonal and sometimes permanent lifeguard!

With the Internet, Insights moved into online marketing of microscopes.  Their main site for microscopes was Microscope World.   It was a very successful operation and in April of 2005 Jack sold the business and retired.  In October of 2005 he married his long time girlfriend Barbara Bolton (picture top right). They currently live in Encinitas, CA and enjoy each other's company and a variety of sports:  Surfing, Windsurfing, Running, Bike Riding, Swimming and the like. You can see more of their adventures on this website. At left, Jack Ross during the Microscope World years.

That's the abbreviated version of the life of Jack Ross.  If you are looking for this person,  you can get in touch by email here

Return to home page.