John “Jack” Charles Magnin was born on April 8, 1939, in Oconto Falls to Elmer and Ruth Magnin.

He grew up on the family’s 200-acre dairy farm, a place that shaped his character, work ethic and deep love for his community. In 1971, he assumed ownership of the farm and later transitioned it to a beef operation, eventually shifting to cash-crop farming with his family until 1999.

Jack met the love of his life, Marilyn (Phillips), in the late 1960s and they had three sons: Troy, Mitchell and Paul. The five of them worked side by side on the farm, sharing early mornings, long days and more memories than any of them could count.

Jack’s early education began at Busy Nook Country School, a one-room schoolhouse serving grades 1-6 with one teacher, outdoor restrooms and countless stories he loved to retell. He continued at Oconto Falls Washington Junior High School and graduated from Oconto Falls High School in 1957.

A gifted and competitive athlete, he participated in football, basketball, track and baseball; he often joked that if wrestling had existed then, he would have done that, too.

After high school, Jack attended UW-Oshkosh, playing on the basketball team his first year. He graduated in 1963 with a major in history and minors in math and physical education. He later completed his physical education major at UW-Madison in 1968.

Jack began his teaching and coaching career in Wautoma in 1963. Over his years there, he taught junior high math, history and physical education for grades 1-8. He also coached as an assistant basketball coach, served seven years as head football coach, one year as head baseball coach and spent six years leading the track and field program – earning three conference championships.

It was in Wautoma that he first introduced a junior high wrestling unit in PE, inspired by a class he had taken at UW-Oshkosh and by a growing passion for the sport that would ultimately define his career.

In 1970, Jack returned home to Oconto Falls to teach K-8 physical education. He immediately introduced the wrestling unit into the junior high curriculum, working alongside wrestling coach Nick Kinziger and Art Paulson. Jack continued coaching football, basketball, cross country and track. But it was wrestling where his legacy truly took root.

In 1975, he helped found the Oconto Falls Junior High wrestling program, nurturing it until 1980 when he became the co-head varsity wrestling coach – a role he held until 2019. Across more than four decades, Jack coached many state champions, conference championship teams and regional championship teams. His proudest professional moment came in 2010, when Oconto Falls won the WIAA Division 2 Team State Championship. That same week brought a very proud personal moment as well: the birth of his only grandchild — his namesake, Jack.

Jack’s contributions to the sport were recognized at the highest levels. He is a member of the Wisconsin Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame and the Oconto Falls High School Hall of Fame. Yet for all his accolades, he remained humble, always placing his students, athletes and community first.

Jack touched countless lives over the course of his career. To students, he was a mentor. To athletes, a steady and inspiring coach. To colleagues, a trusted friend. And to his family, he was the heart of their world — steadfast, loving and endlessly devoted.

His legacy lives on in the thousands of young people he guided, the community he strengthened and the family who loved him beyond measure.