In Memory of J. Roy McKechnieRoy was born in 1933 in Pawtucket, RI to Scottish immigrant parents and was the first of his family to be born in the United States. He attended Pawtucket public schools and Moses Brown School in Providence, and entered Brown University in 1951, where he participated in the Air Force ROTC. Upon graduating in 1955, he received his Air Force commission, becoming a Second Lieutenant and going on to active and then reserve duty for a total of eight years, achieving the rank of Captain before resigning his commission. Roy then pursued a successful 30-year career in advertising with several major agencies in New York City, Detroit, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, and Canada. He rose from Copywriter to International Creative Director and received major industry awards for his work and for a film about the first endurance motorcycle race in Malaysia that he wrote, produced, and narrated. He also created and led a worldwide training program in key skills for advertising industry newcomers. Roy served as Co-President of the Rhode Island chapter of the international Scottish cultural organization The St. Andrew’s Society, and was a Life Member of its Toronto, Canada chapter. He was Trustee and Special Projects Chair for Brown University’s Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection of material devoted to the history and iconography of soldiers and soldiering, and on several occasions, Chair of his Class of 1955’s reunions. He also was a mentor and lecturer for the Rhode Island National Guard’s GUARDian program, which provided special training for young people facing the consequences of their first arrest, and a reading skills counselor and trainer for 1st through 3rd grade pupils in Ogden, UT, where he and Barbara lived for 16 years before moving to Tuxedo, NY in 2022. Known to family and friends as Roy, he met his wife Barbara at Grace Episcopal Church in New York City in 1979. His two adult children, Joseph R. McKechnie, Jr. (married to Ahn) and Alexandra S. Rocco (married to Jeffrey) and grandchildren Kia and Nika McKechnie and Nicholas and Molly Rocco, remember him as enamored with aviation, an engaging storyteller, in love with his Scottish ancestry, an avid reader, and a loving and generous spirit. His younger brother, Ian, passed away several years ago. Roy and Barbara have been active members of Episcopal parishes wherever they have lived throughout the world. Having endured “Church Searches” in several countries, they were blessed with finding St. Mary’s-in-Tuxedo as their new church home, and wonderful new friends among their neighbors in Tuxedo. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.
|
