John Sammartino

John Sammartino, 89, of Central Point, Oregon, passed away on March 6, 2026, from complications of lymphoma.

Born on June 24, 1936, in Walsenburg, Colorado, to Sicilian immigrant Salvatore Sammartino and Pauline (Corsentino) Sammartino, John grew up on a goat ranch in LaVeta. At 17, his family moved to Tarzana, California, where he balanced his senior year of high school with work as a meat cutter and delivery boy, graduating from Canoga Park High School in 1954.

That same year he reconnected with Babette (Babs) Howell, whom he had met at a dance. They married on June 4, 1955, just before he shipped out for basic training. John served in the U.S. Air Force, stationed at Chanute Air Force Base in Illinois and later at Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he earned a Good Conduct Medal. Their first daughter, Gina Babette, was born in Hawaii on August 2, 1957. Honorably discharged in 1958, John and Babs returned to California and began raising their family.

John spent nearly two decades with Air Products, advancing to Plant Manager while providing industrial gases to NASA. He and Babs welcomed their second daughter, Mari Lynn, on December 14, 1960. The family lived in several Southern California communities, forming lifelong friendships with the Kistner and Valenza families. In 1969, after losing his mother to cancer, John brought his father Salvatore into their home, where he lived for the next 14 years. That same year, John survived a devastating hydrogen explosion at work that took the life of his best friend and left him with third-degree burns. With Babs’s devoted care and the daily support of nurse Jean Tharp, who became a cherished family friend, he recovered and continued his career for another eight years.

Later, John and Babs owned and improved a mobile home park in Rochester, Washington, operated a successful real estate business in Rocklin, California, and traveled extensively. Their most treasured journey was a 1993 trip to Sicily, where they connected with relatives and explored John’s paternal homeland. They spent many happy years traveling the United States and Mexico in their motor home before settling in Clarkston, Washington, and finally Central Point, Oregon, to be near their daughter and her husband.

John was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather who took great pride in caring for his family. He is survived by his wife of 70 years, Babette Sammartino; daughters Gina Mannino (Lawrence) and Mari Coffee (George); grandchildren Tifany Caballero (Juan), Tabitha Rose (Justin), Bria Perozzo (Michael), and Jared Garrison (Ashley); and many great-grandchildren. His memory will live on in the hearts of all who loved him.