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Bethlehem Athlete, Temple University Student Dies After Battling Diabetes Complications, 21

Lehigh Valley native and celebrated athlete John Peter Jones died Thursday, Oct. 13 from complications of type 1 diabetes. He was 21.

John Peter Jones

John Peter Jones

Photo Credit: GoFundMe

Born in Allentown, Jones graduated from Liberty High School in Bethlehem in 2020, and was a junior at Temple University in Philadelphia, where he was pursuing a degree in finance, his obituary says.

Jones was known for his outgoing and humble personality.

At three years old, he began swimming with the Bethlehem Stars Swim Team at the Bethlehem YMCA before joining his high school's swim team and later coaching at local youth organizations, according to his obit. This was one of the many sports he was known for playing.

He was also a member of a local choir, marching band, concert band, jazz band, orchestra, and world percussion ensemble, where he won several awards, his obit says.

“John Peter Jones was an extraordinary young man who touched the lives of everyone he met in the Bethlehem community and beyond,” reads a GoFundMe launched for Jones’ memorial expenses.

The page had raised upward of $23,000 as of Monday, Oct. 24.

“John's lust for life was contagious, and he will forever be remembered for that,” organizer Maggie Walter wrote. Any extra donations, she says, will be donated to JDRF, a nonprofit organization that funds type 1 diabetes research.

He is survived by his parents Peter and Elizabeth Jones, brothers Joshua and Jacob, godparents Ann Zsido and Dave Bertram, and many other family members and loved ones.

Funeral services were held on Saturday, Oct. 22 at the Cantelmi Long Funeral Home on Linden Street in Bethlehem.

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