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The big stadium of Heaven welcomed home John Marshall Boulware of Bogalusa, LA on December 4, 2023, at the age of 84.  He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Mary Stewart Boulware, who lovingly referred to him as “My John”.

John wasn’t one to sit on the sidelines of life, but rather to live life to the greatest extent.  He was born in Union, MS to James Douglas and Daisy Catherine Whittle Boulware.  John served 4 years in the US Army Reserve and was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity before graduating from Mississippi State University in 1961.  His occupational accomplishments began with managing the Wade Tung Oil Processing Company and the J&J Squire Shop before his desire to build things bigger steered him as a developer of apartment buildings, rental properties, hospitals, churches, and motels through Boulware Construction Company and ABC Construction.  His entrepreneurial spirit flowed as he was a charter member of MCCA in 1981 and served on the Board of Directors at Nellie Byers Training Center, the Bogalusa Chamber of Commerce, the St Tammany Homebuilder’s Association and the Bogalusa Mental Health Clinic.  At age 26, John was the youngest elder officer in the First Presbyterian Church of Bogalusa and devotedly served the next 58 years until age 84, when he was noted as the oldest member in the congregation.  Every Sunday, John wore his Sigma Chi Fraternity pen on his lapel and offered a radiant smile of welcome at his church.  Following retirement, days were filled with white perch fishing and riding his Harley-Davidson Road King motorcycle. John also loved to travel with Mary from the slopes of Vail snow skiing, to adventures in Guadalajara, Mexico, to exciting destinations on riverboat cruises with American Cruise Lines.  They frequently enjoyed trips with the MSU Alumni such as to Kennebunkport, Maine and Washington State with Jerry Clower and 800 Mississippi State fans.  Above all of these great life adventures and successes was John’s support and love for MSU football.  He was an avid supporter of the MSU Football Foundation and could often be found cheering from the skybox in the Davis Wade stadium.

Along with his wife Mary, John is locally survived by brothers-in-law Pete (Pat) Stewart and Charlie Stewart (Cindy Stafford); sisters-in-law Sue Boulware of Mississippi and Florence (Vic) Boyles; nephews Matthew (Mandy) Stewart and Jimmie Boulware of Georgia; nieces Melissa (Chad) Sheridan, Laura Stewart (Drue McMillan), Candy (Troy) Crain; Marie (Steven) Kemp; Stephanie (Matt) Magee; Amanda (Patrick) Dillard; Mindy (Josh) Ballard; and Sarah Terrell of Georgia; great-nephews Drake Stewart, Eli Kemp, Liam Dillard, Garron Terrell; great-nieces Ashley and Brooke Sheridan, Kinley Stewart, Presley Crain, Adynn and Finley Dillard, Holly and Jade Ballard, Morgan and Brooke Boulware, Amanda and Hailey Terrell; special lifelong friends Joe and Sharon Ball and Alan and Amy Wade; and best neighbors Aquinas and Kim White and Ida Baker.  John is predeceased in death by his parents, James Douglas and Daisy Catherine Whittle Boulware, his brother Jimmie Boulware, sister-in-law Linda Stewart, and niece Teresa Boulware.

A memorial service will be held at the First Presbyterian Church, 511 Ave D, Bogalusa, LA on Friday, December 8 from 9-11 with a service at 11 by Dr. Jim Stayton.

In lieu of flowers, donations in John’s honor can be made to Nellie Byers Training Center.

This world will surely miss the generosity and sparkle of a man larger than life.  As the stadium lights have dimmed, cheers are resounding in the heavenly maroon and white MSU skybox where Cullis Wade and Coach Wesley Reed greet their fellow Bulldog.