John Chapin Vincent, 82, was delivered a peaceful exit from great anguish on June 15th, 2025, due to complications with Alzheimer’s disease and mental health difficulties. His passing brought forth a reunion with “Sweet Peggy O’Neil,” his beloved partner of 60 years, who departed only a short seven months prior.
John was born on September 16th, 1942, at New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut, to Dorothe (Hagge) and James Clinton Vincent.
Like his wife, he was the eldest of three siblings. Younger brother Bill and little sister Jennie relied on his steady guidance during a frenetic youth that saw their family regularly on the move to accommodate their father’s service with the Merchant Marine.
After the family relocated to Bellevue, WA, John quickly became a Wolverine on the roster of his high school baseball team. While his studies were admittedly secondary, these were formative years that allowed him to pursue his athleticism with designs on the big leagues.
Optimistic to fulfill those dreams, he was drafted into the minors by the St. Louis Cardinals before a cardiac event stifled what would have assuredly been a prolific career on the diamond. He continued to play recreationally over the years, joining an adult softball league with the nickname “Johnnie V.”
His life changed forever when chance brought he and Peggy together at the supermarket where he worked. Struck by her auric glow, the two began to step out and married in 1964. They welcomed their only child, Julia, some five years later.
Among other early pursuits, he supported his family and educational endeavors as a delivery truck driver against the lush, dampened backdrop of the Pacific Northwest.
John’s days as a newlywed resumed in his enrollment at Seattle University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts cum laude with an emphasis in education and American government. The stage was set.
Following graduation, the young family looked East. They were attracted to Southwest Montana for its open space and natural beauty, free of the hustle and bustle they had grown weary of.
After making several roundtrips from the Evergreen State, John beat out the competition and secured a teaching position with Bozeman Public Schools in what would be the start of an illustrious career.
Beginning in 1971, he taught both history and government for a span of three decades. He was treasured by his many students, earning the moniker “Video Vincent” for his entertaining yet reflective approach to instruction. He was profoundly affected by the relationships he established with his pupils and fellow educators, finding purpose in nurturing a preparedness for young people on the precipice of their adult lives.
John’s educational career would have to make room for a different sort of prowess when he was ready to expand into the political sphere.
He held numerous public offices over the course of forty years, first in 1975 as a member of the Montana House of Representatives where he was twice selected Speaker. He was elected to the Bozeman City Commission in 1992, also serving as Mayor. The early aughts saw his election to the Gallatin County Commission in 2001, before bookending his service with the state Public Service Commission in 2009. Blending his passions, he also led a course on local and state politics as an adjunct professor at Montana State University.
His wife and daughter joined him during sessions in Helena, where Julia worked as a page while Peggy made use of her sterling silver thimble with the legislative wives. Grandson Kirk was born ahead of his second speakership and was given an early introduction to the democratic process his Gramps so enthusiastically devoted himself.
Once called the “Citizen Politician,” John faithfully served his community with an unrelenting commitment to the preservation and strengthening of our shared way of life. He was a classic Democrat and true Montana statesman whose legacy will carry onward beneath the big skies of what became his forever home.
Apart from but relative to his career, John was an avid outdoorsman with a predilection for catch-and-release flyfishing and exploration of the remote backcountry. His gravitation to a mountain man lifestyle even saw him imitate a coniferous forest around his home, where he found solace when life kept him off-trail. Acquainting his grandson with the therapeutic solitude of the outdoors was of John’s greatest gifts to the adoring boy he raised as a son.
He was a San Francisco sports fan, front and center for every Forty Niner game, though perennially skeptical of their chances without Joe Montana at the helm. He got to see his Giants win their eighth title before shifting his attention to the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Always one to root for the underdog, he was particularly enamored by the Karnowski years.
A lover of music, the windows often rattled to the sounds of Hall & Oates, Skynyrd and one Elvis Presley. He found an icon in Hal Ketchum after being introduced by his daughter, with a feverish devotion that was just this side of unhealthy. A curious hobbyist, he taught himself to play guitar to pair with his original lyrics.
A man of many interests and achievements, John was perhaps most intimately known for his caring dedication to Peggy. Long suffering from multiple sclerosis, he ensured her best interests were met as its progression gradually chipped away at her mobility until she became wheelchair bound.
He built her a single-story home where she could be free to roam without obstruction, including modified doorways, a lowered kitchen countertop and an accessible master bath. He’d later gift her a studio expansion where she could more comfortably see to her various creations.
They shared a love of birding, planting and the quiet comforts of country living. Their Gallatin Gateway home became a place of refuge in their retirement years, similarly one for the constant parade of wildlife they never wished to deter. Each would complete their challenging but wonderful lives in the home they carefully fashioned together.
John was preceded in death by his wife, Peggy O’Neil Vincent; mother and father, Dorothe Hagge and James Clinton Vincent; brother, William “Bill” Vincent; sister, Jennie Vincent Donofrio; and brother-in-law, Danny O’Neil.
He is survived by his daughter, Julia Christine Vincent, and namesake grandson, John “Kirk” Vincent, of Gallatin Gateway, MT; sister-in-law, Letty (Jeff) Anderson; niece, Katie Bravo; and great-nephew, Max Bravo, of Bend, OR; nephew, Jake (Liang) Anderson, of Klamath Falls, OR; sister in-law, Shirley O’Neil, nieces, Jennifer (Lance) Denham and Lisa O’Neil, nephew, Ryan O’Neil, great-nephews Merrick and Garrett Denham, and great-niece Danielle Denham, all of the greater Seattle, WA, area.
John was a husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, teacher, colleague, icon and friend of many. Though his afflictions dismantled so much of the man we once knew, his presence will forever resonate through the lives of those he left behind. He and Peggy are together once more, unburdened and at peace.
A Celebration of Life to honor the eternal union of John and Peggy will be held at 1pm on July 29th at Dokken-Nelson Funeral Service, located at 113 S Willson in Bozeman.
In place of flowers, the family is appreciative of any donations made to the Alzheimer's Association in John’s memory, to benefit other families whose loved ones are battling the pillaging disease and a communal effort to find a cure.
Arrangements are in the care of Dokken-Nelson Funeral Service. www.dokkennelson.com
