Master and Commander
Posts: 1005
Location: NE Florida | Subject: Wednesday Obits
HODDY .. .. John Robert Hoddy, 79, passed from this life into eternity in heaven with Jesus on Thursday, November 23, 2023 in New Jersey. He was born May 18, 1944 in Columbus, Ohio to the late Glenn Robert and Dorothy Eloise (Livezey) Hoddy. John graduated from Hamilton Township High School in Columbus in 1962, where he was the class valedictorian, played football, basketball, and track & field, and was an active member of many school organizations and clubs, distinguishing himself both athletically and academically.
He was a proud U.S Navy veteran, graduating from the United States Naval Academy in the Class of 1966. Trained as a nuclear engineer, he served as a submarine officer on the USS Gato SSN-615 and USS Kamehameha SSBN-642 during the Cold War.
Upon leaving active duty in 1972, John embarked on a successful four-decade career in the civilian nuclear power industry in Illinois, Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania. John's Christian faith was an integral part of his life, and he participated in the churches he and his family attended as an unforgettable Sunday School teacher, Bible Study leader, and building and music committee member.
John's personal interests were wide-ranging, from history to engineering, from literature and poetry to sports and music, from fishing and the outdoors to antique hunting and restoration. He was an avid do-it-yourselfer, nearly singlehandedly remodeling the family's 1880's Victorian historical home in Fulton NY from top to bottom, with the witting and sometimes unwitting assistance of his two sons. He embarked on outdoor adventures with his older son John and sold church organs on the side to have a shared musical activity with his younger son Michael. He is fondly remembered by his boys and their friends as being ready and eager to stage epic water balloon battles and build elaborately engineered ice forts in the winter months. In his retirement years in California, John became a published fiction author, with one book in print, and most of a second completed.
In his last year, although his health challenged him significantly, John was able to rejoin his two sons, their families, and his two grandsons on the East Coast in New Jersey.
John will be remembered by all who knew him as a thoughtful and immediately generous man, full of wisdom, able to converse knowledgeably and at length on nearly any subject, and with a quick wit and indomitable sense of humor in every circumstance and even in difficulty.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his first wife, Mary Ann (Peters) Hoddy and his second wife, Billie (Behrend) Hoddy. John is survived by his two sisters Rebecca Case and Christine (Burt) Smith; two sons, John C. (Michele) Hoddy and Michael T. (Grace) Hoddy, and their two children, his grandchildren, Christopher & Jonathan Hoddy; as well as many other relatives and friends.
RUSSELL .. .. James M. Russell, of Somers, passed away on November 27, 2023 with his family by his side. He was born in Peru, Indiana on June 21, 1939, the son of Samuel M. and Lena (Feather) Russell. James leaves his wife Geraldine (Scavotto), son James Russell (Beth), and daughter Jana Seiler (Alex). He also leaves grandchildren Kathleen Russell Hernandez, James and Daniel Russell, Daniel and Joseph Callahan and Madison Seiler. He leaves a brother, Jerry and his wife Wanda in Tennessee whom he loved to travel with.
He also leaves extended family Michelle Scalia (Joseph) and Robert Chaplin (Elissa); grandchildren Suzanna Nichols, Brenna Nichols Flynn, Michaela Williams Mongeon, and Alana Chaplin. Great grandchildren Lucas Mongeon and Kairo Bautista.
James served 7 years in the US Navy Submarine Service. He retired after 33 years with Combustion Engineering/ABB and Westinghouse Electric working as a Supervisor in Field Services. Since retirement James has enjoyed spending time with his family and friends, and traveling. James was predeceased by his parents, Samuel and Lena, and 6 older sisters.
Calling Hours will be held from 2-4 p.m. Sunday Dec. 3, 2023 at Leete-Stevens Enfield Chapels, 61 South Rd., Enfield. A Funeral service will be held at 12:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 4, 2023 at Leete-Stevens. Burial will follow with military honors at the MA Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Agawam.
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Wednesday Obits
