John Laurence Drake

John Laurence Drake, known to his friends simply as Larry, was unfailingly gentle, kind and patient. If you didn’t lean in and listen closely to his soft-spoken words, you might miss the dry wit and sly humor tucked inside them. Larry passed away peacefully on the morning of August 4, 2025, at the age of 79—a respectable number, though still a distant second to his mother, who lived to the remarkable age of 106 before her passing last October.

Larry’s life unfolded in colorful chapters. The “Tex” phase began in Waco, Texas, where he was born. As a teenager, he moved for his first Granville, Ohio chapter—high school and college. Then came the “hippie” era, sparked by his service in the VISTA program (now AmeriCorps). That chapter led him north to Canada, where he lived first in a commune and later in a cabin, raising his young family with his first wife, Sally, amid the trees and snow.

Eventually, Larry returned to Granville to work in the family greenhouse business with his dad. From there, he went on to work as a quality manager at a plastics plant. Several years later, he met Heidi. They married in 1993 and spent 33 joyful years together—first in German Village until 2018, then in the solar-powered, eco-friendly home they built in Granville, a testament to their shared values and vision.

Larry was a passionate musician, a gifted singer-songwriter with a beautiful tenor voice. He recorded several CDs, both solo and with his beloved a cappella group, The Hardtackers, who specialized in sea shanties and delighted audiences across the region. He also sang with the First Unitarian Universalist Church choir in Columbus and the Denison University community choir, often alongside his brother Rob.

When not making music, Larry was crafting miniature masterpieces—model boats so meticulously detailed they could have fooled Poseidon himself. These were not toys; they were floating works of art. He loved to hand you a magnifying glass and tell you all about hull curvature.

After retiring, Larry found joy in giving back. With his mechanical know-how and generous spirit, he volunteered at the Ronald McDonald House and the Granville Museum, quietly keeping things running behind the scenes—just as he always did in life.

Larry’s legacy is one of kindness, creativity, and quiet brilliance. He will be deeply missed by all who knew him, but his humor, music, and craftsmanship will echo on. He is survived by his beloved wife, Heidi Drake, sons Jai Woody Royce Drake (Evelyn Van Till) and Eric David Drake (Amber Stroh), grandson Aiden Nicholas Drake, siblings Barbara Ziemann and Robert Drake (Nancy Drake), as well as many loving nieces, nephews and cousins. He is predeceased by his parents, Norman and Jeannette Drake, and his stepson, Tony Royce.

Please honor Larry’s life by raising your voice in song often, knowing that he will be singing with you.

A Memorial Service will be held at 2 PM, Saturday, SEPTEMBER 27, 2025, at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus, 93 W. Weisheimer Rd, Columbus, Ohio 43214.

In lieu of flowers, please send checks to; The Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, Grand Central Station PO Box 4777, New York, NY 10163 or donations@michaeljfox.org. Please visit www.McPeekHoekstra.com to share a special memory or leave a message of condolence.