Obituary of John Chester Navelski

John Chester Navelski passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife and 4 children in San Jose, CA at the age of 94. He was born in Newington, NH and grew up on a 200 acre dairy farm. He attended Portsmouth HS where he was very active in sports and was Captain of the Portsmouth High Football team. After HS he graduated from the Wentworth Institute of Engineering in Boston. He worked as a machinist for Kidder Press, General Electric, Robert Shaw Fulton. At North American in Long Beach he worked on the X15 minute-man missile and was there to see it successfully launched into space. In 1952, John received an honorable discharge from the US Navy. In 1957, he made a career change to the US Post Office, where he retired as a Supervisor from Santa Ana, CA main office. He met his life-long love of 72 years, Evelyn Hurd, in 1937. They married in 1939 and had 4 children. He was an active Dad and coached local teams of kids in Dover, NH. John and his family moved to Santa Ana, CA in 1954. In California, summers were spent in Yosemite with his kids and grandkids. He enjoyed golf, fishing, and cooking. He was a fan of the Bostom Red Sox and of the CA Angels. In football, he followed the University of Notre Dame and the New England Patriots. John is survived by his wife, Evelyn, his children Judith Calise, Barbara Navelski, John Navelski, Jr., and Martha Feliciano. His grandchildren include Sean Finch, Michael Feliciano, Christopher Feliciano, Kimberly Silber, Angela Nye, and Jo-el Navelski. He has 14 great grandchildren. The family will gather in San Jose in February for a Celebration of Life of this most beloved family patriarch. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Cancer Society.




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