Edmund R. St. John Jr

03/04/2004

Edmund R. St. John Jr., 83, a respected attorney and former state senator and representative, died Thursday evening at his home at 102 Orchard St. following a lengthy illness. Born in Adams on April 28, 1920, son of Edmund Russell and Veronica Gavin St. John, he attended local schools and was a 1939 graduate of the former Adams Memorial High School. He was an Army veteran of World War II, having entered the service in March 1942. He was honorably discharged as a corporal in October 1945. Mr. St. John was a tank gunner with the Army 239th Cavalry, Reconnaissance Company. He received the Distinctive Unit Badge and ribbons indicating his participation in the Normandy, Rhineland, Argonne Forest and Central Europe campaigns, along with the European Victory Ribbon. Mr. St. John was also a member of the Adams Planning Board, Adams School Committee, and later a member of the Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee from 1968 to 1971. He was a town meeting member from 1968 to 1977. He was a member of American Legion Post 160, the Burnette-Bednarz Veterans of Foreign Wars Post and the Adams Council 230 Knights of Columbus. He was a communicant of the Parishes of Notre Dame-St. Thomas and was a supporter of the local high school athletic teams and the Boston Red Sox. He and his wife of 54 years, the former Marjory E. Aykroyd, were married on Sept. 3, 1949. Besides his wife, he leaves three sons, Edmund R. St. John III of Cheshire, Dennis L. St. John of Shaftsbury, Vt., and Mark A. St. John of Weymouth; two daughters, Elena M. Schaetzl of Pembroke and Marjory E. St. John of Oakland, Calif.; two brothers, Benjamin St. John of Huntington, N.Y., and Charles St. John of Cheshire; two sisters, Margaret Brown of Huntington, N.Y., and Veronica Wheeler of Pittsfield, and eight grandchildren. FUNERAL NOTICE -- A Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated for the life of Edmund R. St. John Jr. on Monday, March 8, at 10 in St. Mary's of the Assumption Church, Cheshire. The Rev. Thomas B. Bagley will be the celebrant. Calling hours at McBRIDE FUNERAL HOME, 6 Liberty St., Adams, will be Sunday from 3 to 7. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations in his memory to the Edmund R. St. John Jr. Scholarship Fund for graduates of Hoosac Valley High School, in care of the guidance department, Route 116, Cheshire, MA 01225, or the funeral home. He also leaves two daughters-in-law, Pamela and Maureen; a son-in-law, William Schaetzl; eight grandchildren, Edmund R. St. John IV of Cheshire; Andrew, Aaron and Christianna St. John of Bennington, Vt.; William and Robert Schaetzl of Pembroke, and Kellye and Kara St. John of Weymouth, and many nephews and nieces.

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