I first met John Backus in 2003, when I was brought in to do a turnaround at Ikimbo. John was an investor. I was the CEO. It was one of those situations where the math could have gone badly if the people didn’t line up.
John lined up.
From the beginning, he was exactly what you hope for and rarely get in an investor: a gentleman. Kind. Thoughtful. Present. He was always available when I needed advice, and just as importantly, he never made himself the center of the story. He didn’t swoop in. He didn’t posture. He listened. Then he’d ask a question that made you stop and think for a second longer than you wanted to.
That was John.
Even after Ikimbo, we stayed in touch. Over the years, I hosted a handful of VC and CEO dinners at the Tysons Palm—small groups, good food, no performative nonsense. John would show up alongside other notables from the DC tech and investment world and do what he always did best: share great stories. Real ones. The kind that carried lessons without announcing themselves as lessons.
He also loved the Wizards.
Once, he took me to a game in his second-row seats. Not a skybox. Not a flex. Just great seats, great basketball, and easy conversation. That night stuck with me—not because of the game, but because it was so John. Thoughtful. Generous. No need to make a production out of it.
John was part of a generation of venture capitalists in Washington, DC that doesn’t really exist anymore. Back when DC was a genuine center of gravity in the VC world. When firms were run by investors who had judgment, patience, and an actual sense of stewardship.
We had real VCs then.
Today, DC has largely become a backwater in venture capital—more noise than signal, more politics than conviction. Through all of that, John and his Proof Fund stayed active. Quietly. Intelligently. Without chasing trends or applause.
That mattered.
John Backus will be missed—not just as an investor, but as a model of how this job was supposed to be done. With decency. With curiosity. With respect for the people doing the hard work inside the company.
I was lucky to have known him.
We all were.
Donate to the Colonrectal Cancer Alliance here.
There will be a memorial service for John at the Center for Education at Wolf Trap at 1 PM. More information can be found here.
