Born in 1925 - Died on November 2, 2000l

Announcement for Commitment Ceremony in Memorial Garden (November 2, 2003):

John Stafford served as Sexton for First Presbyterian Church from the mid 1950s to 1995. Single-handedly he managed cleaning, set-ups, caring for the grounds, maintaining the boiler, performing minor repairs, and preparing and serving coffee for Adult Study. In addition to maintaining the physical well-being of the Church premises, John also provided a sense of stability and commitment. His commitment, his reliable and distinctive presence, his encyclopedic knowledge about the facilities, ready wit and lively conversation have indeed proved irreplaceable. John died on November 2nd, 2000. Please join us in remembering this remarkable man on November 2nd 2003, when we will place his ashes in the Memorial Garden at the conclusion of the All Saints Day service.

Original Notice Posted on Web After John Passed Away in 2000

John Francis Stafford, Sexton at First Presbyterian Church, Palo Alto, died peacefully 11/2/00 at Lytton Health Care Center, Palo Alto.

John was born in 1925 in Quincy, Illinois. His family moved to San Francisco shortly thereafter. At the age of three he was admitted to the Shriner's Hospital for Crippled Children in San Francisco for the first of a series of operations, spanning 11 years, to correct the foot deformity with which he had been born. The operations were successful.

As a young man, John engaged in a series of jobs including bicycle telegram deliverer, lumberjack, and house painter. In the mid-fifties he was hired by the pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Palo Alto to manage the facilities for the new Church about to be built at the corner of Cowper and Lincoln. For the next 40 years, John served as sexton of First Presbyterian Church.

Sometimes he was helped by his wife, Edna, who died almost 20 years ago. His reliable and dedicated service, encyclopedic knowledge about the facilities, independent spirit, wry humor, and ability to tell a good story were greatly appreciated by successive pastors and generations of congregation members. After his retirement he lived in Lytton Gardens.

Dick Symes shared a story about John recently:

John would never tell us the date of his birthday. Year after year, we would have little staff birthday parties for everyone else, but never John. One year, we had a really special party for our Church secretary. We really went all out, with champagne, balloons, games, special food, and we were all sitting around having a real blast when John leaned over to me and said, "OK - my birthday is in two weeks."

We don't know if that was really his birthday or not, but we had a party nonetheless.