John Byrne Joseph

John Byrne Joseph (85) passed away peacefully after a fight with cancer.  John was born on May 23, 1939, in Kewanee, IL, to Col. John A. Joseph, U.S. Army, of Wagner, SD, and Marguerite W. Byrne RN of Reedsburg, WI.

John grew up primarily in Sacramento, California. He attended Sacred Heart Elementary where he made lifelong friends.  He went on to Christian Brothers HS and then graduated from Bishop Armstrong High School where he played football.  John always stood out with his flame-red hair and massive freckles. John was an entrepreneur from a very young age, selling bulbs door-to-door.  He went on to have a paper route delivering the Sacramento Bee and worked at a local gas station.  John loved to build things including model airplanes and a Model A Ford hot rod.

John attended Santa Clara University, graduating with a BSC in business in 1961.  While at Santa Clara, John was on the football team and took up surfing off the coast at Santa Cruz.  John knew that after college he would be going to Vietnam, so after a surf break in Hawaii, he entered the Naval Aviation Officer Training Program in Pensacola, Florida.  He served the Navy as a navigator with VW-13 and VR-3 during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Cold War and Vietnam War.  After six years of active duty, he continued on with the Naval Reserve serving with squadrons at NAS Alameda and NAS Whidbey Island.  After 20 years of service, John retired as a captain.

John met the love of his life, Geraldine Menegus, in Toms River, NJ.  They married in July 1966 and had an epic cross-country trip in Jere’s 1964 GTO convertible.  They moved to the Bay Area where John began his career in the insurance industry spanning 30 years. 

John and Jere had two daughters, Erin and Shelley  In 1979, John and his family relocated to Bothell, Washington. John’s later life was eventful, full of travel and projects.  In addition to his extensive travel as a Naval aviator, John enjoyed many trips in retirement both abroad and on his Harley Davidson motorcycle.  He eventually visited every continent.  His other pursuits included:  restoring the 1964 GTO, constructing a home from scratch in Olympia, building an experimental airplane, and most importantly, mentoring those in need in his community.

John is survived by his partner, friend and former wife, Geraldine Lloyd; daughters Erin Bonipart (Brian) and Shelley Bailey (Phil); grandchildren Cole Bonipart, Sara Bonipart and Levi Bailey; sister Kathleen Owens (Wes); and nieces Meredith Yenne (Scott) and Nancy Simpson (Chris).

A Funeral Mass will be held at 11am on Wednesday, August 7th at Assumption Parish Seattle.  Interment will follow at Holyrood Cemetery in Shoreline at 1:30pm.