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John C. Graham

John C. Graham, 67, Shirley, New York John Chambers Graham, passed away on May 4, 2025, at NYU Langone Hospital–Suffolk, in Patchogue, New York, after a 16-month battle with multiple health challenges. He was born on January 3, 1958, in Springfield, Vermont, to Merton John and Margaret (Chambers) Graham. John was educated in Springfield schools and graduated from Springfield High School in 1976. Following graduation, John joined the United States Coast Guard and completed basic training in Cape May, New Jersey. He was assigned to the Coast Guard Support Center in Boston and received electronic technician training at Governor’s Island, New York and Wildwood, New Jersey. His final assignment was at the USCG LORAN-C Station in Romulus, New York, where he was a plank owner of the Seneca LORAN-C transmitter, the first LORAN station to use solid-state electronics. He was honorably discharged in 1980 at the rank of Electronic Technician Second Class. John attended SUNY Stony Brook on the GI Bill to study electrical engineering. At Stony Brook, John was an active member of the Tuath na hEireann Irish club, and he produced Irish music programs on WUSB. John was drafted out of Stony Brook to work for Spellman High Voltage in Plainview and later Hauppauge, New York, where he worked until he retired in 2023. After retirement and even after his stroke, John continued to work for Spellman on a part-time contract basis. John was a world traveler, having made his first transatlantic flight at nine months old when he went home to Ireland with his parents to meet his grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and neighbors. This was the first of countless trips that John made to Ireland. He also visited Austria, Canada, Germany, Israel, Hungary, Russia, and surely there were others. John especially enjoyed his annual trip to the Christiansted St. Patrick’s Day parade on St. Croix—a trip he was able to make this year accompanied by his longtime dear friend, Linda Bergman Sills. John was an avid sports fan, especially of the Boston Bruins, Boston Red Sox, and New York Giants, and he was a regular follower of Clare GAA football and hurling. Up the Banner! John loved music, attending dozens of shows from CBGBs to the Montreal and New Orleans jazz festivals. John especially enjoyed attending plays by Irish playwrights in the City with friends and family. John was an organ donor, and in a final act that exemplified John’s generosity and kindness, his eyes were donated in the hope that another might see. John was predeceased by his parents and his brother, James. He is survived by his brother Myrt and his wife Leslie of Springfield, Vermont; his sister Kathleen and her husband Jimmy of Christiansted, U.S. Virgin Islands; and his brother LeRoy and his wife Maria of Middlebury, Vermont. He is also survived by his nephew Andrew and his wife Stephanie and their daughter Claire of Lake Worth, Florida; his niece Erin and her husband Ryan of Waterboro, Maine; his nephew Derek and his wife Lila of Springfield, Vermont; and nieces Bridget and Charlotte of Middlebury, Vermont. John is also survived by his longtime friend and partner Lidiya Pelter of Shirley, New York, as well as numerous cousins in the U.S. and Ireland and countless friends around the world. John will be missed by his beloved cats Kiki and Sladkiy. A celebration of John will be held on Long Island on May 31, 2025, from 2:00pm till 4:00pm at Buckley's Irish Pub (386 Main Street in Center Moriches).   A graveside service will be held at Pine Grove Cemetery in North Springfield, Vermont, on June 2, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to your local humane society or to WFUV, specifically in support of Ceol na nGael (“Music of the Irish”), at <a href="//wfuv.org">wfuv.org</a>. Ruland Funeral Home in Patchogue, New York, and the Davis Memorial Chapel in Springfield, Vermont are assisting the family with the arrangements.

January 3, 1958 - May 4, 2025

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