John Grause
1961-2025
Juanita moved to Key West from Iowa in the early 1980s and made it his home for 20 years. On his island in the sun, he befriended many. He shared his love of Scrabble, Aunt Rose’s, reading, sitting at the pool on Ramrod, Christmas caroling, using your voice for justice, the Deli, flamingoes, and anything from Heliographics. So many of us were many miles from home, and he helped create a sense of family, our Tribe. For that, we are forever grateful, as were our families, to know we had such a good friend.
John returned home in 2003 to help his mom, becoming her primary caregiver. He and his mother often sang songs and hymns to captivated audiences on Facebook, as well as working on her garden together. Her dahlias won awards. He was able to spend time with family and made many new friends, as he was a catalyst in the gay community of Humboldt, using his words and his voice. To stave off the effects of winter, he would go to Puerto Rico and recharge.
Wherever Juanita went, a mumu was packed, along with sunscreen, a carton of cigarettes, a book, a coffee maker, and a good time. We hope he is on his own island in the sun, swimming with flamingoes.