Private

Bay Shore New York  - John Engel, 77, passed away on August 18, 2024 in Bay Shore New York. He was born in Queens, New York June 16, 1947 to Jane Harriot Engel and John Ludwig Engel. Although he was an only child, John enjoyed the richness of having cousin “siblings”; Peggy lived in the same house;  Larry, Barbara and Mark lived close by. They were so involved in each other's lives Mark refers to himself as ‘The kid brother from another Mother’. As a child in Rego Park, New York and later Stewart Manor, New York. Many of John’s interests were influenced by his parents; his father speed skating, skiing and photography; his mother  cooking and love of books.   He became a very competent chef and created inspiring excellent meals. A favorite childhood vacation was the annual summer visit to Airdwood, a working farm near Speculator  New York; John loved being involved in helping with the work on the farm. John attended local grammar schools, Archbishop Malloy High School and then Sewanhaka High School for his senior year. Upon being encouraged to leave Archbishop Malloy due to his comedic antics, The school summoned his Father from work to take him home. John was relieved and happily surprised to hear his father say,  “You lasted a year longer than I did!”

John graduated from St. John’s University, New York and received a  Masters degree in Education from Hunter College, New York. He also received a Master Gardener Degree after completing courses at Cornell University in Nassau county. John’s career with the  City of New York, began as a Child Protective Social Worker, then manager with Home Care Services then retiring as  Assistant Director in the  Department of the Aging. His career progression moved in sync with his own aging! John loved to get a laugh out of anyone in his company;  partner, friend or stranger. He excelled in corny antics and sight gags often accommodated by very creative outfits. His jokes were always at his own expense; never at another person.Responses to his efforts ranged from hearty belly laughs to  “I can’t believe you said that”, confused looks, cringes and groans. If you got his humor it was a treat to be entertained and to John’s credit he never stopped trying to get any kind of laugh out of you! It was during his college years he got  involved in a lifelong Pursuit: rowing. Getting up at the crack of dawn to row didn’t bother him at all - he was made ‘ stroke’ for his team traveling for competition and frequently won medals while he was there.

He continued to enjoy the sport throughout his life. He enjoyed other outdoor activities: swimming, body surfing, boating, bicycling and  speed skating in Winter on local ponds, he loved to grow trees from seed as well as vegetables for his garden. He was praised for his home made raspberry jam which he shared with many friends. Frequently empty jars would be returned with the request for a replacement. His love of gardening was instilled in him by his beloved grandfather. Before the advent of  digital photography John was an avid Camera photographer. His Father taught him this art. They even set up a dark room to process the film together.  He was an avid reader especially devoted to a daily read of the New York Times. If a delivery was late or not delivered John went into a bit of a tail spin and drove to pick one up often arriving home with the paper in the driveway! His most enthusiastic interest was in sports cars. John loved driving them and he would have loved buying more but was constrained by the capacity of the garage! He supplemented his love of owning  cars with car magazine subscriptions, special edition books on the topic as well as scale model cars.  Empathy towards others was a characteristic that he expressed in frequent and Random Acts of Kindness. Neighbors were pleased to find their trash cans return to their side yard from the curb on pick up days.  Little kids were captivated by his friendliness in the Grocery store line. Strangers were delighted to share conversations during trips to foreign countries. 

John met the Love of  his life, Carol Thomas in 1979 when they both worked for The City of New York. That encounter led to a loving relationship for over forty years. They traveled often while working but there was one annual vacation above all else - a vacation at very special place at Heart Bay on Lake George near Ticonderoga, New York. It was John’s most favorite place and once close friends were introduced to the spot they too would come up at the same time, many of John’s most memorable sight gags happened there. John and Carol enjoyed doing the same things; sunsets, the beach  boating, gardening and home improvement. They took long walks wherever they were, sometimes getting lost in their community they were referred to as “The Walkers”. John and Carol maintained two homes, one in Bay Shore, New York and their snowbird home in Boca Raton, Florida. Whichever home he was in was home, but the Bay Shore home was the core one in his heart. As medical issues slowed him down in recent years John maintained his joy in reading, news, and most of all, friends and family. He was blessed to die peacefully with Carol and a dear friend, Meg Smith at his bedside. John is survived by his life long partner, Carol, his cousins, Peggy Witt, Larry Engel, Barbara Dean and Mark Curiale, nieces and nephews and many beloved friends.