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John LoBueOctober 16, 1952 - January 14, 2003
John Charles LoBue of Friday Harbor died on Jan. 14, 2003 after a long battle with cancer. He died at home; his devoted family was with him. He was 50. John was born on Oct. 16, 1952 in San Jose, California. He was raised and attended school in Campbell, California. He was the youngest of seven children. He spoke fondly of his childhood, running barefoot through his family’s strawberry fields and playing in the irrigation ditches on his father’s cherry ranch. His passion for nature and animals began at an early age. As he got older he enjoyed fishing, hunting, skin diving and racing dirt bikes. In middle school, his interest turned to sports. He excelled in wrestling and in the eighth-grade he won the title of All-County Champion of Santa Clara, California. He attended Campbell High School and played varsity football and continued to wrestle. In John’s sophomore year, he met Toni Maas and they had their first date on Halloween night 1969. That was the beginning of their lifelong love for each other. They spent their early years together enjoying the beach, fishing, camping, skiing, scuba diving, and four-wheeling with John’s 1969 International Scout. They graduated from Campbell High School together in 1972. John attended San Jose Community College and majored in Metal Fabrication. He was a welder for Westinghouse of Sunnyvale, Calif., and later worked as a welder for 14 years at Food Machinery Corporation of San Jose. He helped build the M16 tanks and the Bradley Fighting Machines that the Army used in Operation Desert Storm. They visited Toni’s brother, Steve Maas, of Friday Harbor in July 1974. They fell in love with islands and decided then that San Juan Island was the place for them. They married on Oct. 16, 1976. They purchased their property on San Juan Island in 1977. They spent the next 14 years vacationing and camping on their property. Every year they envisioned raising their two sons, Daniel and Ryan, on the island and building their dream home. Finally, in July 1991, John and his family made the big move to the island and started living their dream. John began building their home with friend and contractor Walt Cornell, and later worked for Walt in construction for five years. In 1996, John was hired at the University of Washington Friday Harbor Laboratories as a maintenance mechanic. With his many skills, he was well-suited for the job. He loved the marine environment, the people, and the variety of his job.
John took pleasure in farming, driving his tractor, and raising pigs. His wife, Toni, and sons were involved in Swine 4-H for seven years, and he continued to raised pigs for 4-H thereafter. He was proud to have had several Grand Champion market hogs at the San Juan County Fair. John later decided to grow barley for pig feed. Wade Sundstrom offered him his old John Deere Combine, if he could get it running. That was no problem for John; he liked nothing better than a challenge. With a little tinkering and determination he drove it home and harvested his barley that year. Along with his many interests on the farm, his goal was to raise "Free Range Pigs," in which he succeeded. Last spring, on the corner of Bailer Hill Road and Wold Road, you could watch John’s beloved sow "Louise" and her litter of piglets running free or basking in the sun. John loved his family and island life. Not a week went by that he didn’t comment on how lucky he was to live and work in paradise. John had 10 wonderful years of living his dream. John is survived by his wife, Toni, of 26 years; sons, Daniel and Ryan of Friday Harbor; mother, Addie LoBue of Campbell, Calif.; brothers, Mike LoBue of Campbell, Calif., and Steve LoBue of Ukiah, Calif.; half-brothers, Tony LoBue of Aptos, Calif., and Sam LoBue of San Jose, Calif.; half-sister, Marie Ens of San Jose, Calif.; mother-in-law, Annette Maas of Friday Harbor; brothers-in-law, Steve Maas of Friday Harbor, and Dave Maas of Soquel, Calif.; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father, Sam LoBue, in 1993; and half- brother, Phillip LoBue, in 2000. Donations can be made in memory of John LoBue to the
Join family and friends in a "Celebration of John’s Life" at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 2, 2003 at the University of Washington, Friday Harbor Labs Dining Hall, 620 University Road, Friday Harbor. Potluck will follow the memorial. We would love for you to share a memory, story, photo, song or some music that John and his family would enjoy. |
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