John C. MacDIARMID

John C. MacDiarmid

John Charles MacDiarmid of Spout Spring passed away Aug. 23, 2008, at Guggenheimer Rehabilitation Center at the age of 80.

Born in New York, N.Y., on May 12, 1928, he was a son of the late John Clark and Anna Maser MacDiarmid. He was a member of Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church and had served his country during World War II in the U.S. Army and in the Merchant Marines. He was a Boy Scout leader, a lieutenant in the Katonah Fire Department, New York, and served as fire chief for six years in the Somers Fire Department, New York. John was the founder of the NYFD Benevolent Association Fund. For 30 years he was a general manager for Consolidated Edison Electric and Power Co. (ConEd) of New York, a school bus driver for the Cape Cod (Massachusetts) School District, and was a mortgage appraiser for Cor-East Savings Bank of Lynchburg.

John belonged to the Cape Cod Elks for 30 years, Cape Cod American Legion Post, American Legion Post 104, Appomattox, Appomattox Masonic Lodge and Reedy Spring Masonic Lodge. Also, he was a member of the Lynchburg Kazim Oriental Band, the Shriners and Scottish Rite Club. John was the treasurer for the Appomattox AARP and was responsible for seeing that Spout Spring was included on the Virginia State map.

He was preceded in death by his parents, stepfather, a brother and a sister.

In addition to his wife of 59 years, Margaret MacDiarmid, he is survived by five children, Robert MacDiarmid and his wife, Teresa, of Spout Spring, Carol A. Donato of Appomattox, Susan Kennedy and her husband, Eugene, of Appomattox, Laurie A. Walsh and her husband, Stan, of Sussex, N.J., and Jeanne M. Harper of Appomattox; seven grandchildren, Christina Grishaw, John C. MacDiarmid II, Annemarie MacDiarmid, all of Spout Spring, Amy and Kelly Tracy of Sussex, N.J., and Gregory and Christopher Harper of Lynchburg; four great-grandchildren, Kaitlyn and Christian Kennedy, and Taylor Grishaw of Spout Spring and Kevin Tracy, Sussex, N.J.

There will be a Mass of Christian burial at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2008, at Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church, by Father James Gallagher, with burial to follow in Liberty Cemetery.

The family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. today, Aug. 25, 2008, at Robinson Funeral Home. Also, there will be a Masonic service held at 7 p.m. this evening with a visitation following until 8:30 p.m. at the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, the family request memorial donations be made to the American Heart Association, 2395 South Fork Road, Appomattox, VA 24522; or the Shriners Children's Hospital, Shriners International Headquarters, 2900 Rocky Point Drive, Tampa, FL 33607.

Robinson Funeral Home, (434) 352-7111, is serving the family and you may send an online condolence by visiting our website at www.robinson

funeral.com.