Obituary of John Samuel Simon Spirito

November 20, 1926 – December 8, 2015 It is with great sadness that we announce the death of John Spirito age 89 late of Regina after a brief illness. John died just six weeks after the death of Edith, his wife of 65 years. They are together again. John was born in Newport Wales but spent most of his childhood in New Barnet England. He had two older sisters Kitty and Margaret. As a boy John loved animals and often brought strays home. He was always scrounging for ways to provide for his pets and did chores of all kinds to feed them. John did well at school and got a job as a legal clerk. World War II cut his career short when he went to work one day to find the Law Offices bombed out. John joined the Royal Navy as soon as he was old enough and saw action in the Pacific. When the war ended in 1945, John was only 19 and went deep-sea fishing in the North Atlantic for a while. Later he joined the Borehamwood Fire Department. He married Edith in 1950. They had two children: Janet in 1952 and Andrew in 1954. In 1956 John and his brother-in-law Jack Rutherford immigrated to Canada. They landed in Montreal with $20.00 between them (or so the story goes) and not knowing the language and without other options they both joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. John became a fire fighter with the Air Force; a profession and career that he was very proud of and where he served for 25 years. John and his family lived on Air Forces bases in Summerside PEI, Goose Bay Labrador, Marville France, Lahr Germany, Rivers Manitoba and Winnipeg Manitoba. John was involved in several serious fire related incidents. In Summerside both his hands were burnt up to the elbows when the Air Force Firefighters assisted local firefighters to put out a fire at a downtown department store. In Goose Bay, Canadian Firefighters assisted US firefighters when a US Air Force cargo plane crashed into a large oil storage tank, killing all crew on board and potentially causing a disastrous explosion. Foaming the runway to assist Jet Aircraft in trouble was a frequent event. Despite the risks and constant moving John and his family enjoyed military life and were involved in all sorts of community and sports events. While in Europe they traveled extensively and were able to visit their many relatives in England. When John retired from the Air Force he began work as a Safety Officer for Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) in Regina. This involved inspecting installations all over Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, providing safety training for employees and writing reports whenever someone was injured. John liked helping the cowboys who worked at community pastures the best. Outside of work John and Edith were active in the community. They volunteered for years at the Pancake Breakfasts at St. Paul’s Cathedral. John could always be found helping out at Strawberry Fair and other events at St. Paul’s, anywhere an extra pair of hands was needed. John also enjoyed playing darts at the Canadian Legion. After he retired from PFRA in 1982, John kept busy at home. He and Edith were constantly redecorating the house and redesigning the garden. He had a very special dog, Prince, who was his faithful companion for 15 years. He loved family gatherings, feeding everyone, making everyone laugh and playing cards or darts. He was proud of his seven grandchildren and delighted in his 12 great grandchildren. We will all miss him very much. John is predeceased by his parents Samuel and Gwen (nee Simon); sister Kitty (Hebette); grandsons Mathew and Andrew (Farnell), and beloved wife Edith (nee Rutherford). He is survived by daughter Janet (Phil) Farnell; son Andrew; grandchildren Sam (Trina) Farnell, Logan (Tiffany) Farnell, Ashley (Bruce) Boa, Nicole (Kyle Vindevogel) Spirito, and Andrea (Ej) Spirito; step-grandchildren Michael (Angie) Mock and Michelle (Ted) White and their children Karsen, Chase, Sidney Mock and Theo, Tyler, and Emma White. John is also survived by greatgrandchildren, Hayden, Cooper and Julie Farnell, Fayde and Raeve Farnell, Tia, Kamryn and Aria Boa, Braedyn and Londyn Vindevogel, Kayden and Everleigh Spirito; sister Margaret (Gordon) Perkins, nephews John and Robert and their families. Memorial Service and Inurnment will be held at St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral Columbarium, 1861 McIntyre Street, Regina, SK, on Thursday December 17, 2015 at 2:00 p.m.