John Mayo Singleton, Jr.

John M. Singleton, Jr. was released from these earthly bonds at 6:56 PM on Tuesday, March 21, 2023 with his loving family by his side.  

He truly “lived” his 79 years, being born in Morgan City, Louisiana on April 22, 1943. He graduated from Sulphur High School in 1961 and went on to get a BS in Engineering from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA. Having met his wife-to-be at the BSU while attending McNeese, he got married in 1965 to Mary Louise Arthur of Lake Charles. He worked for Levingston Engineers, Inc. for over 20 years as a project manager at almost every plant in the area.

John and Mary had many friends and lots of family and their weekends were filled with travels. Over the years, they logged over 200,000 miles traveling all over this beautiful country. They thoroughly enjoyed traveling and camping. They traveled the country on a Honda Goldwing motorcycle (much to the dismay of Mary’s mother) but loved sharing all those stories of their travels. They loved to go out and eat, especially for fried shrimp. In his spare time, he was very active with the Lake Charles Civic Ballet, serving as the Technical Director for 25 years. John was a life member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) And over the years served on many committees within the Society, most recently serving on the Old Guard Committee.

John was the author of a book on the history of Maplewood, LA. This book: Maplewood, The town that wouldn’t die, is still available on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Maplewood-town-that-wouldnt-die/dp/B086BBX7JH).

John has one daughter, Gwendolyn Joy Singleton Williams, RN, (Marty) of Frierson, LA. Joy gave him 2 grandchildren that he and Mary spoiled rotten… Faith Williams and Caleb Williams. They had a son, John E. Singleton (deceased) and have a second son, Charles Bradley Singleton, DVM, (Alisha Hyatt) of Austin, TX. Brad and Alisha have given them 2 grandsons, Parker Singleton and Jude Singleton who were also well spoiled. He is also survived by 2 Nephews, Jean Paul Singleton (Rhonda) and Michael Singleton and a special friend Claire Cagnolatti.

John is preceded in death by his parents, John and Lorraine Singleton and his wife of 54 years, Mary Arthur Singleton. He lost an older brother, Patrick Randolph Singleton to pancreatic cancer. He lost his first son, John E. Singleton, at age 6 to a school bus accident. He has lost many extended family members and lots of close friends that he will be happy to see in heaven. We know the catching up visits are glorious and he is so happy now.

Many thanks are extended to the nurses and doctors of Memorial Hospital, especially those of 8 Tower. The care he received here was above and beyond and the family is forever grateful.

Since John devoted so much of his life to engineering, it is requested that any donations be made, in lieu of flowers, to the John M. Singleton scholarship fund set up with the McNeese Foundation (P.O. Box 91989, Lake Charles, LA, 70609).

The funeral services will be held at Johnson Funeral Home in Lake Charles at 2 PM on Sunday, March 26, 2023. Services will be led by Rev. Marty Williams. Burial will follow at Highland Memory Gardens in Lake Charles, LA. Visitation will be at the funeral home on Saturday, March 25 from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM and continue Sunday, March 26 from 12 PM until the start of the service.