John C. Bock,63, president/CEO of Bock Water Heaters, died March 25 at his home after a long illness. He joined the company as a full-time employee in 1963, after spending many summers and after-school hours learning the family business. He took over as president/CEO in 1990 when his brother Robert retired. Like his father, Oscar Bock, John Bock was an inventor. He developed several new models of water heaters and was directly involved in building Bock's Turboflue machines. He was a member of the Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).
Bob Gelman, 65, national sales manager for General Wire Spring Co., died April 1 after a long illness. He had been with the company since 1974.
James Barbian, 67, retired president of Distro Inc., died of a heart attack Jan. 24 at his home. He joined the wholesaler and manufacturer service company in December 1984 and served as its president for 10 years beginning in 1986. Distro stocks and distributes products to the Winholesale companies.
