John Monforte

John G. Monforte, nicknamed “Lorenzo” by his loving sister, passed away peacefully on June 16, 2025 surrounded by his children. John was a real character, and he left his mark on the world around him. From Cleveland Oklahoma, John was a great defender of public education, justice, and the power of optimism.

A veteran of the U.S. AirForce, John got his degree from Oklahoma State University in electrical engineering. He spent his career working for Boeing designing some of the most advanced technology in stealth aircraft at the time for the U.S. military. He was no stranger to hard work having paid his own way through college by working on family farms as well as laying tracks for the railroad. Although he originally wanted to be a football coach or a minister in the church, his time in the service as a radar technician changed his life path as he moved to designing complex radar and targeting systems later in life. He was a gifted student, having skipped two years of grade school which he would later describe both as a blessing and a personal curse as it meant he was smaller than his peers on the high school football team in Cleveland, which he loved, where he played as number 25.

His contributions to the community included coaching kids’ sports and serving as a member of the Optimists’ Club in Kansas. He continued in public service after his retirement serving on the city council of Cleveland Oklahoma endeavoring to invest in the future by making sure Cleveland would have clean drinking water for generations to come, a hospital, and good sports facilities for the kids in the form of a public pool.

It is perhaps not surprising that John passed away the day after Father’s Day, as he loved his kids and thought family to be a most important pillar in a person’s life. Anyone willing to listen to his stories about his kids’ lives could attest to his genuine pride in their accomplishments. He instilled in his kids the value of an education and never giving up. After divorcing, he spent many years as the primary parent for the children and taught himself how to parent his young kids. He was a seminal father figure who not only rebuilt more than one house without the help of professionals, but also he knew how to sew, iron, and cook. Although he may have spent more on the tools to fix any job than what a professional would have cost, and he had about five meals he kept on rotation, his kids knew he was never going to quit on them. Even when the kids were grown and driving out to visit him, he would wait up until the wee hours to make sure everyone got home ok.

He was a real character who would get worked up over politics and instances of injustice or inefficiency. We affectionately call, “pulling a John Monforte” many things from dumping a ton of pepper on your food to a personal boycott of an establishment for any unfair or inefficient policies. He was a reader who loved history, religion, science, and politics as well as watching his shows like the Big Bang Theory. He used to jokingly tell people that the “G” in his middle name stood for Great instead of Gilbert, that is John, the Great, Monforte.

John leaves behind his five children David, John, Angela, Tanya and Elizabeth, two brothers Bill and Bob Monforte, nine grandkids, and one great granddaughter. At 86, John was preceded in death by his parents Albin and Marie Monforte and his two sisters’ Sue Dietz and Jane Davis.