John Demmer was 'a man of steel,' loyal MSU donor

Eric Lacy | Lansing State Journal

LANSING -- The city has lost its "godfather," said Bob Every, a friend of the late John Edward Demmer.

Demmer, a self-made corporation founder, loyal financial backer for Michigan State University and World War II veteran, died Saturday in his Harbor Springs, Mich. home. He was 97.

Demmer was born in Saginaw, but spent most of his life in Lansing as a manufacturing industry leader and proud Spartan.

But his life wasn't defined solely by his business acumen and MSU fandom. Demmer consistently followed through with promises to help others, especially Lansing's youth, Every said.

"A person once told me the only boundaries in a person’s life are the limitations they put on themselves," Every said. "John had no limitations.”

Every met Demmer in 1990 when Every sought a new location in the city for his boxing club.

After about a 15-minute conversation, Demmer allowed Every to use one of his storage facilities on the city's north side — rent-free.

Demmer had welders build high beams to hold heavy bags and brought in crews to clean the place up.

To this day, Lansing's Crown Boxing Club still operates at 1010 Ballard St. — rent-free.

Every is scheduled to speak at Demmer's funeral service to be held 11 a.m. Thursday at the Estes-Leadley Greater Lansing Chapel, 325 W. Washtenaw St., in Lansing.

Visitation will be held 2-4 p.m. and 6- 8 p.m. Wednesday at the chapel.

Demmer attended Michigan State University, then Michigan State College, and majored in metallurgical engineering, the study of metal properties and production.

After college, Demmer joined the Army. He served during World War II and played a crucial role during the invasion of Normandy, France.

Demmer was responsible for keeping tanks battle-ready for a battalion. He also boxed competitively while in the military.

"He was born with the DNA to drive and be successful," Bill Demmer said of his father.

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After the war, Demmer moved to Lansing, where his in-laws lived and worked for his father-in-law's business, Olofsson Tool and Die.

He left the business in 1951 and purchased his own manufacturing firm in downtown Lansing.

This was a transformative period in Demmer's career; he eventually turned Ace Manufacturing into Demmer Tool and Die.

The company later became Demmer Corp. and grew to about 250 employees by 1970. By 2010, the Demmer Corp. operated out of seven facilities and employed over 1,600 people.

The corporation's new organization, Demmer Investments LLC, has evolved over time and operates plants in Lansing, Minnesota, South Dakota and Mexico.

The plants specialize in the aerospace, computer, chemical and transportation industries. Bill Demmer, John Demmer's son, is the CEO of Demmer Holdings.

Michigan State football coach Mark Dantonio wrote Sunday on his Twitter page that John Demmer was "a man of steel." Dantonio also praised Demmer's military service in World War II, generosity and friendship over the years.

John Demmer and Marguerite "Marnie" (Olofsson) Demmer, his wife of 65 years, moved to Harbor Springs, Mich. to live full-time in 2008.

But they maintained close ties to the Lansing region and came back often to attend Michigan State sporting events and other events on campus.

John Demmer was one of the top donors to Michigan State athletics. He was a member of the "Ambassadors," the highest donor level of the Spartan Fund, and donated millions to facility projects.

Demmer was such a friend of football coach Mark Dantonio's that he watched MSU games at Spartan Stadium inside the Dantonio family's private box with Becky Dantonio, the coach's wife.

Demmer also was tight with Alabama football coach Nick Saban, especially when Saban led the Spartans on the gridiron in the late 1990s.

Both Saban and Mark Dantonio attended Demmer's birthday party on Dec. 29, 2010 — three days before the Crimson Tied and Spartans squared off in the Capital One Bowl.

Bill Demmer said his father loved to tailgate so much before and after MSU games that he hired a driver to take him and several friends to the Spartans' 2014 New Year's Day Rose Bowl game against Stanford in Pasadena, Calf.

“The connection that he had with MSU that was appreciated and reciprocated added years to his life," Bill Demmer said.

John Demmer was a football season ticket holder for over six decades, according to MSU's athletics website.

In 2008, John Demmer was quoted in a story posted on MSU's website as saying he and his family were proud "to live and work in a community where its citizens find pleasure in the arts, the theater, natural resources, and college athletics but also in their association with a world-class university."

The Demmer family has provided financial support for MSU's athletic programs, WKAR-TV, a Formula 1 racing team in the College of Engineering and the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum.

John Demmer and his wife provided the initial funding for the John and Marnie Demmer Shooting Sports, Education and Training Center on MSU's campus. It was built in 2009.

Other MSU projects John Demmer and his family have supported financially:

Spartan Stadium's north end zone renovations

The Clara Bell Smith Student-Athlete Academic Center

The Duffy Daugherty Football Building's Renovation Fund

George Webster Expendable Scholarship Fund

Demmer Center for Business Transformation inside the Eli Broad College of Business

MSU's athletics' website mentions Demmer's fondest memory at MSU was a ribbon cutting event for the Demmer Family Hall of History, an area inside the Skandalaris Football Center.

The Hall of History is a public display for that honors MSU football tradition and accomplishments of former players, coaches and teams.

Demmer is preceded in death by his parents, Henry Michael Demmer and Anna Elizabeth Demmer; his wife, Marnie Olofsson Demmer; and son John Henry Demmer.

He is survived by sons Bill Demmer and Edward Demmer; daughter Peg Demmer; sisters Mary Heppler (99), Betty Raths (95) and Delores Beetham (89); several grandchildren, step-grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews.

Those who wish to make donations in John Edward Demmer's name are encouraged by the family to support The Young Americans, a non-profit organization that offers music and dance programs for youth.

Donations can be made to The Young Americans, PO Box 576, Harbor Springs, Mich., 49740.

Eric Lacy is a reporter for the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at 517-377-1206 or elacy@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @EricLacy.