Although their early years were spent in the same town, John and Margaret did not know each other until high school. Married for over 40 years, the McEwans loved to spend time with their three married children and their now six grandchildren. The couple traveled as often as they could internationally and would go on annual family vacations especially to Walt Disney World and the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont.
John began his advanced education in the seminary but then redirected his goal of serving people through a career in education. He began as an English teacher and moved into administrative positions: principal, superintendent of schools, and first lay president of his high school alma mater. John received several awards over the course of his career: the 2000 Massachusetts Principal of the Year, the 2009 Massachusetts School Counselor Association Administrator of the Year, and was named to the Jostens Renaissance Hall of Fame.