Skip Navigation

Remembering Wayne Roger Jahns: Alumni Passes Away at 88 Years old

Wayne Roger Jahns, born to William and Josephine Jahns in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on March 20, 1932, passed away at his home in Morristown, NJ on July 24, 2020 from natural causes. He leaves behind his three children David, Lisa and Dan; and his ten grandchildren, Kevin, Andrew, Katie, Dylan, Ashley, Tommy, Hailey, Ryan, Austen and Finley. He is predeceased by his beloved wife of 52 years, Betty and his two brothers Lowell and Ronald.

He was graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1955 and went on to earn an MBA at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management in 1958, graduating as President of his class. It was during his time at Northwestern that he met and married Betty Selmer. He started his career at Weeden & Co. in Chicago before relocating to Short Hills, NJ where he continued with Weeden for several years from their NYC office. In the 1980s he started his own boutique bond trading firm Ryan & Co. Later in his career he worked for Kemper Securities from which he retired in 1996.

Wayne was very active throughout his life, playing football in high school and college and then excelling at racquet sports including tennis and squash. He was also an avid runner and completed the New York Marathon in 3 hours and 27 minutes. Later in his life he picked up golf and, like most golfers, had a love-hate relationship with the sport. One of the highlights was his 1996 hole in one at the Portmarnock Golf Club in Dublin Ireland. He also loved playing and socializing with the Round Table group at Canoe Brook Country Club.

Wayne attended Church regularly (at Christ Church of Short Hills and later at Renaissance Church in Summit) and was a supporter of many charitable organizations including Doctors Without Borders, Special Olympics and The Humane Society. He spent several years as an officer in the United States Army stationed at Fort Benning, GA during the Korean War. Wayne was a devoted husband and an amazing father and a pillar of his community.

More Alumni Notes

Voting is open! Help choose the new design for The Red Shirt before 5 p.m. CDT on Friday, April 26. Vote now!