Menu
Search by Name
Search by Name
FUNERAL HOME
John McCafferty Obituary
Following a lengthy illness, John C. McCafferty, Colonel, USAF (Retired), passed away Sunday, December 1, 2019, in the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System.
A son of Monica Harrington and the late John A. McCafferty, John was born in Cambridge, Mass., March 4, 1957.
Colonel McCafferty graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, in 1979. In 1983, he graduated from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences F. Edward Herbert School of Medicine in Bethesda, Md., then completed his general surgery residency at Wright State University, Fairborn, Ohio. He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He was a member of the Cecil American Legion and Cuddy Veterans of Foreign Wars in Pennsylvania.
Colonel McCafferty entered the U.S. Air Force through Reserve Officer Training Corps Commission in 1979 and served his country on active duty 32 years as a general surgeon, critical care surgeon, flight surgeon and commander. Colonel McCafferty had multiple overseas deployments to include Bosnia-Herzegovina (Bosnia War), Oman following the USS Cole tragedy, and United Kingdom (OPERATION Enduring Freedom). One of the first Critical Care Transport Team (CCAT) surgeons, his deployment to many countries in the Middle East, including Afghanistan during OPERATION Enduring Freedom, proved lifesaving to many service members who sustained life-threatening war injuries.
His military decorations include the Legion of Merit Award, Southwest Asia Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Aerial Achievement Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal and Humanitarian Service Medal.
John was preceded in death by his father, John A. McCafferty of Cambridge.
He is survived by and will be immensely missed by his wife of 21 years, Mary Novak-McCafferty of Cecil, who cared and advocated for him throughout his illness and was at his bedside in his final days; his mother, Monica Harrington McCafferty of Cambridge; and his siblings, Anthony (Maria Wojtaszek) of Cupertino, Calif., Elizabeth (Graham) Burt of Storrington, United Kingdom, Richard (Edna Ramalho) of Arlington, Mass., and Phillip McCafferty of Cambridge. John loved and will also be missed by his in-laws, Jean and Ed Scholtz, Robert and Kathy Novak, Maureen Bedel Novak, Margaret Novak, Diane and Bruce Koontz and Linda Novak, and his nephews and nieces, Neil and John McCafferty, Clint, Mark and Michael Novak, Eddie and Sarah Scholtz and Matthew, Jessica and Madison Koontz.
Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday in Coleman-Taylor Funeral Services, 3378 Millers Run Road, Cecil, PA 15321, 724-745-9510, were prayers of transfer will be said at 9 a.m. Friday, December 6, followed by a Christian Funeral Mass in St. Mary Church, Cecil, with Monsignor Joseph Lamonde officiating. Interment will be in National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, Cecil Township, with full military honors accorded by the U.S. Air Force.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to: Center for Military Medicine Research, www.cmmr.pitt.edu, 412-624-3420; Disabled American Veterans, www.dav.org, 1-855-619-4376; or William K. Rundell Jr. Endowment Fund, www.wright.edu/give/rundell, 937-775-4547.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for John McCafferty
John Carty
December 12, 2019
Eulogy for COL (Dr.) John C. McCafferty, USAF (Ret)
Prepared by MAJ John J. Carty, Jr. USA (Ret)
Today we celebrate the life of John McCafferty, a life that none who knew him will ever forget. John was colorful, brilliant, eccentric, abrasive, thoughtful, generous, off-the-wall and many other things. He was called many names, most not repeatable here in church. We, his closest friends from high school days called him The Creebird- a nickname that said it all and is a story for another time. But at the end of the day, he was a lot more than one word or phrase could describe. His bottom line was fun and he could deliver it with a car, a cell phone, an inopportune comment, in fully explained Ancient Greek, or strangely enough, a uniform.
The first time I attended Mass here in St. Marys on 14 February 1998, I anchored the right side of the bridal party as Johns Best Man, just as he had been my Best Man twelve years prior at St. Denis in Massachusetts. My wedding occurred in August and so John, in his inimitable way, disregarded instructions and appeared dressed collar to trouser cuffs in white. I wondered for a minute if he actually wanted to be the bride, but no, of course it was the summer dress uniform of the USAF. I wore the all-season US Army Blue Mess uniform and had asked him to wear the USAF version, but John was a stickler for details in some things and it was summer, so he was wearing white. Over his distinguished career John disregarded convention or instructions, even direct orders many times but only to do what was, in his eyes at least, the right thing. We will come back to that.
In context, John and I met as high school kids in Civil Air Patrol, the official Auxiliary of the USAF. Uniforms and career military service are part of our respective DNAs. I became an associate member of the McCafferty family rather quickly and spent many hours, days and evenings at 140 Magazine Street. Over the course of several years in CAP we experienced many things together, along with brother Tony. The younger McCaffertys, Betsy, Rich and Phil, were wisely content to watch from the sidelines as this all played out, having on occasion been unwitting participants in some pretty classic, if harmless antics. The highways, byways, watersheds, quarries, and shooting ranges of rural Massachusetts bore the brunt of those bivouacs, training events and actual missions. Neither were Hanscom AFB nor Fort Devens immune and I recall being escorted off post by the respective service law enforcement posses more than once. Somehow, Johns technical and fully researched explanations of why we should have access to this or that piece of the installation mostly didnt resonate and out the gate we went, observed all the way. We usually wound up at Dennys or a subshop, or even a McDonaldsonce.
That said, we learned a lot in CAP and did many real-world things that set us up for our military futures, not the least being John obtaining his pilots license. He was justly proud of that. John maintained and improved his flight ratings throughout his active life. He was also quite ready to offer his services as an informal airline pilot, ready to rent an aircraft on any day, at any hour to fly his friends or family whither they may go. I think the big-city ground equivalent of that is called a Gypsy Cab. The difference is John was licensed and he refused to charge anyone a cent for the service.
I believe that some of the things we saw and learned on the search and rescue missions in CAP forged Johns resolve to become a surgeon. He was a go-getter and knew what he wanted. I always thought he wanted to be a fighter pilot but he was far more cerebral than that. He wanted to help people and did that by putting his massive intellect to work in medicine. His reputation as a surgeon at the top of his field was widely known throughout military medicine. His unconventional bent was well served by this also because he regaled me, and Im sure any other of his friends who would listen, with stories of innovative trauma surgery techniques he tried. That they worked and saved patients lives was simply a manifestation of who John really was and what he wanted to do. He was never afraid to push the envelope and his feel for the correct course of action was supernatural.
John was a warrior. He never missed an opportunity over his 30-year career to volunteer for deployment. I made a similar but happier-themed address at John and Marys wedding, including a comment on how American military people put themselves in harms way because we believe in helping those oppressed. John did that on a grand scale and it cost him. Particularly, his experiences in Sarajevo during the Balkans War were telling. He helped a lot of people, saved many lives and suffered bureaucratic professional backlash for that unwillingness to toe the mark again. John ignored quotas and found a way to save those supposed to be left behind. Most importantly though he witnessed horrific cruelty and unnecessary human suffering there, which he could neither prevent, nor relieve. Though he physically stood tall and carried on, it bore him down emotionally. At our day and time in the service there was no recognition of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. There was an unwritten rule particularly for officers to bury feelings, to bite the bullet, in other words dont look for counseling lest you be marked as damaged goods and not worthy of further service certainly unthinkable to John. No less important was his steely Irish resolve to bear ones troubles silently. This I know because I share it, another of the many unwritten rules we live by, in many ways to detriment. John suffered and those who loved him best suffered with him. Without the love and dedication of his stalwart wife, Mary, we would have come to this crossroad several years ago.
Throughout his life, John sought to help others and show the way. That didnt always work out the way hed planned but his heart was true. He is with us now and if he could, he would correct me on numerous things Im sure. We commend him to God, and when Taps sounds over his resting place today, be confident that Reveille sounds in the same breath for him in Heaven, awakening him back to service. He will have donned his Flight Suit and in his own special way set out to guide us in the good we all have left to do here below.
Warren Rose
December 9, 2019
I met John when I was a third year medical student at Wright Patt in 1984. John was obviously brilliant, and a wonderful teacher- I learned so much at his side. He truly cared for his patients and his charges. My deepest condolences to his surviving family. Rest In Peace, John.
John with all his nursing friends Azores 1988
TAMI LINK
December 9, 2019
I'm so sorry to hear of John's passing. I worked with John in the Azores. He was an amazing surgeon and a good friend. Hi amazing intellect astounded all of us. I remember him reciting the history of Europe one day, from a book that he had read the night before! His dry sense of humor always cracked me up. In fact, it was so dry, some times I don't think he even realized he was making a joke :)
I had great affection for John and although we had lost touch through the years, whenever fellow Azores nurses reminisced about him, I always had a smile.
Sincerely,
Tami Link, Lt Col, USAF (Retired)
James Toffolo
December 8, 2019
My sincere condolences to the McCafferty family, Mary his wife, Monica his Mother and all of John's cousins, Aunts, Uncles, military/medical colleagues and friends. Cousin John was an extraordinary man. My earliest memories of John were visiting him in Cambridge during our summer vacations. Although he was just 6 years older than I, John had a demeanor and character and a level of integrity that I had not experienced before and as a child under 10, I was very impressed. He was different from other people. He spoke softly and spoke about scientific endeavors and theories. He listened to your feedback and was always happy to answer your questions. He had a determined look in his eyes and it was evident he had a mission in his heart. As the years went by, I was fortunate to meet with John at various family gatherings. He was the same person. Brilliant, humble, passionate and a great storyteller. I was jealous of his travels and stories, but much more so, it was John's steely commitment and huge accomplishments in his life that inspired me to change my life. I was so proud to tell my friends that my Cousin John was a flight surgeon in the USAF. Lastly, when my Father (Captain,US Army, Korea) died in 2009 and we were requesting military burial, we discovered that all the federal military records of our Dad's service had been burned in a fire in St. Louis and that a military burial could not be had without proper documentation. So at the 11th hour (literally less than 36 hours from the funeral) John made some phone calls to the Connecticut National Guard and our Father was given the military burial that he wanted. Cousin John, Rest in the Peace of the Holy Spirit. Thank you for your service to our Country. With Love, respect and gratitude, James Toffolo
Maria McCafferty
December 6, 2019
John, you will be missed.
Cathy McCafferty
December 5, 2019
My heartfelt sympathy, thoughts and prayers are with my Aunt Monica, John's wife Mary and John's brothers and sister, Tony, Betsy, Richard and Phillip. I was saddened to hear of John's passing.
Throughout our childhood, Johnny was always inquisitive, spirited and throughout his life always learning. He was a brilliant man and a talented surgeon who loved and served his country with pride as a proud member of the United States Air Force. He was an exemplary military man. He will be missed.
May you rest in peace, Johnny.
Your cousin,
Cathy McCafferty
Frank Nash
December 4, 2019
John may God Welcome you into eternal rest and Bless you. Thank you for your many years of service. May God comfort your family in this time of sadness. I was a BC High classmate of John's.
Mike Casey(former Ma resident)
December 4, 2019
Col. McCafferty,
Sir, I would just like to say thank you for your years of dedicated service and sacrifice for our Country when you served with the USAF- especially your numerous deployments to Europe, the Balkans and the Middle East. And to your Family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.
Linda (Cashion) Dobbs
December 4, 2019
John McCafferty was one of the first Air Force surgeons I had the pleasure of meeting while stationed in the Azores in 1988. There, we became great friends enjoying the Portuguese culture and the closeness of a remote military assignment. One morning in 1991 while we were assigned in England and John in Turkey, out of the blue he called from a pay phone and asked where exactly we lived, told me to stand by then after checking a map, said he would be in Barningham in 3 hours. That spontaneity was John. When he was newly assigned to Keesler AFB, MS in 1996, he lived with us in our house in Ocean Springs until he could find his own place to live. While doing laundry, he accidentally washed his flight suit with a Sharpie in the pocket and when I dried my white nursing uniforms, they turned purple. The next day John was apologetically in the dryer with rags and a gallon jug of acetone trying to make things right. Everything was alright. We had wonderful times together and became even closer friends. Ironically, he bought the house across the street and he and Mary were our neighbors for years afterwards. He flew Mary and I in a small plane over the Gulf of Mexico where dolphins leaped from the water below the plane. The flight was awesome, but the crosswinds made for a dicey landing. He and Mary hosted our family and my parents at their new home for Thanksgiving. Those were wonderful years. Several years later, when I was commanding a medical unit in Afghanistan just after 9/11, John surprisingly appeared in Kandahar as a leader of a Critical Care Air Transport Team to transport several of our patients. Upon my promotion to Major and then Lt. Colonel, I was honored to have John administer my oath of office. He was loved by my family and even performed a minor surgery on my dad. He was my husband's best friend and helped him through his illness until his death in 2013. John was the most brilliant and eccentric man I have ever met. He had a rough few years with illness, but I was lucky he had the strength to call me frequently to keep in touch. It is with great sadness I write these words as this loss carries with it a significant portion of my life. I am extremely grateful he was my friend and fortunate to have known him. I can only hope he and Michael are somehow together in spirit learning more curse words in Portuguese and reminiscing of days gone by. My deepest sympathy to Mary and his family. John will be sorely missed.
Diana Kienle Eubanks
December 3, 2019
John was a wonderful person and doctor. I had the pleasure to work with him during his tour in the Azores. My condolences to his loved ones.
December 3, 2019
John was a wonderful brother-in-law who was always there for me. He will be missed. margie novak
Showing 1 - 12 of 12 results
Make a Donation
in John McCafferty's name
Memorial Events
for John McCafferty
How to support John's loved ones
Honor a beloved veteran with a special tribute of ‘Taps’ at the National WWI Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The nightly ceremony in Washington, D.C. will be dedicated in honor of your loved one on the day of your choosing.
Read more
Should I Send Sympathy Flowers?
What kind of arrangement is appropriate, where should you send it, and when should you send an alternative?
Read more
What Should I Write in a Sympathy Card?
We'll help you find the right words to comfort your family member or loved one during this difficult time.
Read moreResources to help you cope with loss
Estate Settlement Guide
If you’re in charge of handling the affairs for a recently deceased loved one, this guide offers a helpful checklist.
Read more
Obituaries, grief & privacy: Legacy’s news editor on NPR podcast
Legacy's Linnea Crowther discusses how families talk about causes of death in the obituaries they write.
Read more
The Five Stages of Grief
They're not a map to follow, but simply a description of what people commonly feel.
Read moreWays to honor John McCafferty's life and legacy
Obituary Examples
You may find these well-written obituary examples helpful as you write about your own family.
Read more
Obituary Templates – Customizable Examples and Samples
These free blank templates make writing an obituary faster and easier.
Read more
How Do I Write a Eulogy?
Some basic help and starters when you have to write a tribute to someone you love.
Read more
