John Mason Leitch

John Mason Leitch, of Severn, Maryland, completed his earthly mission on Sunday, August 13,
2023, surrounded by family and friends.
John was born on December 15, 1962, in Highland Park, Michigan, to Ronald and Carolyn
Leitch. The three most important things in John’s life were his faith in Jesus Christ, his family,
and his service to others, particularly his 14 years of service in the U.S. Army.
As a bit of foreshadowing, while attending South Lyon High School, John was very active with
his friends in wargaming and was known as the unofficial leader of the group. He graduated from
Eastern Michigan University, in 1986, with a bachelor’s degree in history. While he was in
college, John served in the United States Army Reserves and participated in the Army’s Reserve
Officer Training Corps program. He was a Distinguished Military Graduate and commissioned
as an Armor officer in the United States Army. He later transferred to Military Intelligence and
was the Distinguished Honor Graduate of his Military Intelligence Officer Transition Course.
John was particularly proud of the fact that he was jumpmaster-qualified and was a master
parachutist.
John left the Army in January 2000, having achieved the rank of major, and entered the corporate
world of Signals Intelligence. He enjoyed over 23 years of leading and managing organizations
in both the government and private sectors. In 2010, John founded Winquest Engineering
(Winquest) Corporation. Under his leadership as President and CEO, Winquest gained a
reputation for exceptional service; in 2020, it was named among the “Top 10 Most Promising
Cybersecurity Companies” by CIOReview Magazine and was recognized by the Department of
Labor with the HIREVets Platinum Medallion Award for its efforts to recruit, employ, and retain
veterans. In 2019, John received the Cybersecurity Champion of the Year Award at the 2019
Maryland Cybersecurity Awards presented by the Cybersecurity Association of Maryland, Inc.
Central to John’s life was his personal relationship with his Savior Jesus Christ and living a life
that glorified God. He became a Christian while he was in the Army and eagerly shared his faith
with others. Second only to Christ, his greatest joy and blessing in life was his family: his
beloved wife of over 26 years, Francy (Atkinson), who he met at the Military Intelligence Officer
Transition Course, and their daughters, Alaina and Payton. John devoted his time to doting on
Francy and the girls; enjoying the family’s Rough Collies, Piper and Lochinvar; making annual
father-daughter beach camping trips (which Francy called “hobo-ing”); and passing his love of
gaming (like Skyrim) on to Alaina and Payton. He was a faithful Michigan Wolverines and
Detroit Lions fan and enjoyed driving the Saleen Mustang that his father helped him secure. John
was loved dearly by his family, friends, and community at large for his integrity, work ethic,
selfless service, humility, graciousness, humor, and wise advice.
A memorial service will be held at Fink Funeral Home, 426 Crain Highway South, Glen Burnie,
Maryland, at 2:00 pm, on Saturday, September 16, 2023. In lieu of flowers, donations can be
made to Samaritan’s Purse (https://samaritanspurse.org).

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