Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A beloved and longtime teacher in Pinckney Community Schools has passed away.

77-year-old John Thomas Brooks, affectionately known to many as “Mr. Brooks”, passed away August 4th.

Brooks’ Obituary states “John graduated from Adrian Catholic Central in 1967, where he played on the football team. He spent his career as a machine shop teacher, a job he genuinely loved. John was the shop teacher for Clawson High School from 1972-1985 and Pinckney High School from 1985-2004. He was beloved by hundreds of students, helped with parade floats for Homecoming, and took students on epic senior trips to the Bahamas and Disney World. John rarely took anything too seriously and was always ready with a joke. He enjoyed sitting outside at the picnic table listening to music and enjoyed the comings and goings in the neighborhood. John was a dedicated father and very involved in his children’s activities. He was involved in his son Matthew’s sports, from little league, to being the assistant coach for the Hamburg youth football team. John loved riding motorcycles and cooking; he was a great cook. He was a wonderful husband, father and grandfather and will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him”.


Pinckney Community Schools shared the following on social media:

“I would like to share the sad news regarding the passing of former Pinckney teacher John Brooks, who was a metals teacher at Pinckney high school from 85-04 who passed after a 3 year battle with kidney cancer. John was an extremely popular teacher during his tenure as he loved teaching and was always proud of his students and proud of being part of our Pirate family. We have shared John's obituary below and want the family to know that our Pirate community is thinking of you as you celebrate and remember the impact he had on so many of our students. ❤️🏴‍☠️”

Brooks’ Farewell Memorial Gathering will take place tomorrow, Tuesday, August 11th, from noon to 1pm with a luncheon following at the American Legion Post 419 at 9807 Whitewood Road in Pinckney.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are suggested to Trinity Health Cancer Care Patient Support Fund.

His full obituary and more information are available in the provided link.