John S. Peck was born and raised in Huntsville, Ala., one of five children, to a NASA engineer dad and a teacher-turned homemaker mom. He graduated from Auburn University with a B.A. degree in journalism and enjoyed a 30-year newspaper career as a reporter, state capital correspondent and editorial page editor. He is now public relations manager for one of Alabama’s leading school districts and married with two teenage sons.
One thing that set Huntsville apart during John’s growing up years was its pioneering spirit. As home to NASA’s propulsion center, the city teemed with dreamers who were always pushing the envelope to reach new horizons in space. Reminders were everywhere during the 60s, from astronaut training visits, to rattling school windows from giant Saturn V rocket firings, to downtown jubilations celebrating the moon landings.
John attributes that NASA exposure for his insatiable thirst for travel. Between the ages of 16 and 22, he had bicycled through 28 states, three Canadian provinces and 14 countries in Europe. Road trips and air travel soon added to the adventures. He reached his 50th state by age 35 in travels that included both hemispheres and underwater in scuba diving adventures. Journalism proved the perfect fit to combine his love for writing with travel and new experiences. The newspaper sent him on numerous thrilling assignments like co-piloting a hot air balloon, flying through a fully developed hurricane with the Hurricane Hunters, covering space shuttle launches, descending into a mile-deep coal mine, flying shark patrol over the Gulf beaches, shadowing chancellor candidates in the newly unfied Germany, covering U.S. Republican and Democratic conventions, reporting from the World Triathlon Championship in Hawaii, and countless others.
His fourth grade schoolteacher, Mildred Seay, was the first to nurture John’s knack for writing. She continuously pushed him to write in different genres and proudly had him read his works to the class. Ms. Seay continued to follow his career long after her retirement and was not shy about correcting his grammar.
John wrote a weekly column for 14 years at the newspaper in addition to regular articles. He had a variety of news beats including the state capital, local government, investigative reporting, health and the environment and the court system. When vacationing, and even on his honeymoon to Tahiti and New Zealand, he would often write travel pieces. A moving tribute to his beloved dog, Scoop, drew hundreds of reader responses. An investigative reporting project he co-led on pollution in the Tennessee River won a global environmental award. When the newspaper job ended, the Madison City Schools PR job became a wonderful fit working around such sharp minded students and innovative educators.
John’s adventure writing interest stemmed from journals kept on various bicycle trips with his younger brother. Two are worth noting: their 22-state trek across America and a 14-country tour through Europe stretching from Scandinavia to Italy. The brothers were just 17 and 15 on their trans-American bike trip - just the two of them - in an adventure their father called their "ride of passage" into adulthood.
John is married to former TV news producer Emily Roane Peck from Memphis. The two met when they covered the Alabama Statehouse as political reporters. Between mom duties, Emily is an adjunct American government instructor and online course reviewer for UAH. They remain busy attending church, community and school events, and traveling throughout the U.S. in their camper with their sons and a dog. John’s motto is: “You only live life once, but if you live it right, once is enough.”