The sudden loss of John Peak, who passed away April 7, 2017, left a void in the ELI team that will be hard to fill. John was a long-time ELI facilitator and beloved by everyone he worked with. He came to ELI from Sears, where he had been instrumental in rolling out Civil Treatment® to the entire organization. He was an active proponent of Civil Treatment at Sears, and the success of the program there is a testament to his dedication.
As an ELI Master Certified Facilitator, he taught the Civil Treatment Basics certification program as well as day training of the Civil Treatment program.
In remembering John, Paula Garlen, ELI Director of Implementation and Delivery said: “John was always open to the possibilities of a new opportunity and enthusiastic about the work he did. He was committed to the certification programs and gave the participants the best he had to offer. He was a fantastic facilitator and an amazing person.”
John was passionate about his work and was a skilled professional with a love of learning. He practiced the principles of civility, respect, and inclusion — the doctrines he taught through ELI’s Civil Treatment training — in his daily work.
It was not uncommon to find John spending extra time with participants after the training session had ended for the day. You’d see him smiling enthusiastically and sharing the valuable tips and tricks he’d learned throughout his career — he was the guy who was always willing to go the extra mile.
“John loved teaching, and he loved teaching our content because it dealt with issues of fairness, inclusion, and civility, which were personally meaningful to him. Wherever he went, he could adapt and teach in a way that affected people’s lives,” said Stephen Paskoff, President and CEO of ELI.
A devoted family man, John regularly shared stories and photos of his family with his friends at the office. John’s beaming personality and his contributions will be remembered by everyone who knew and worked with him.
I loved working with John over a number of years at ELI! He will be greatly missed.
A little bit of John’s spirit lives on in all of us and he will never be replaced. I often find myself thinking, “What would John do?” He inspired all of us to always go the extra mile when it came to serving the needs of our clients.