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John Prestidge Obituary
Chelmsford
John C. Prestidge, 88, of Chelmsford, Mass. died Wednesday, April 21, 2021.
He was the husband of the late Joan E. Prestidge and the late Carol W. Eisenklam.
Born in Minnesota in 1932, he was the son of the late David and Esther Prestidge, and he was a longtime resident of Westford, Mass. and Nashua, N.H. before moving to Chelmsford, Mass.
He proudly served in the U.S. Navy on aircraft carriers during the Korean War and moved to Massachusetts after he was honorably discharged in 1954.
Known as Dad, Grampa John, Johnny, Mr. P. and other affectionate nicknames, he earned a BS in Electrical Engineering at Northeastern University and worked for several electronics companies while raising his family in the 1960s and '70s. He was a business partner at Shain Associates as an electronic manufacturers' representative and then started his own company, Prestidge Marketing, before retiring.
His hobbies and passions included writing several books of poetry - including readings at the Chelmsford Public Library - nature photography, baseball and fishing. In his early years in Mass., his fishing prowess earned him the right to meet the Massachusetts governor after he caught the largest Rainbow Trout.
His other hobby was people – John would talk to, take interest in and befriend anyone needing a conversation. John loved to travel whether it was to Switzerland to ski or to Africa to go on safari. He spent many winters skiing at Sunday River in Maine where he was a slope-side ambassador and thoroughly enjoyed skiing for free as a senior citizen.
He leaves two sons, John M. Prestidge and his wife Gail Sawtelle of N.H. and Robert M. Prestidge and his wife Margaret L. Prestidge of Westford. He was the grandfather of Robert J. and Henry J. Prestidge. He was the brother of Mary (Mickie) West and her late husband Eric and the late Ken Prestidge and Katie, Jim Prestidge and Shirley and Pat Prestidge. He is survived by Pat's wife Do. He is survived by numerous caring nieces and nephews.
He was the step-father of Christine Bentley, Andrea Blair, David Eisenklam and the late Daniel Eisenklam. He was the step-grandfather of Stefanie and Hallie Blair and Eleanor, Abigail and Jonathan Eisenklam.
John will be buried in Dunstable with his late wife Carol at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to a local animal shelter or toward Parkinson's research.
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Memories and Condolences
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Erin Parisi
April 27, 2023
Think of John often. I saw a Summer Tanager last week in Rye, NH. I took and picture and thought of John. I would have sent him that picture and would have loved it.
Fondly, Erin, his neighbor on State Street
Lori J Deuink
April 27, 2022
My gosh I have so many memories of John and Carol! They were the NICEST people to be around, so happy and positive. I loved hearing the stories from their travels, about skiing up north, about all the dogs they raised and about their family. Johnny was an amazing photographer and became quite the cook too! They were both wonderful to me and I always felt comfortable and welcome at their home. They also loved my yorkie, Kiki, and asked me to bring her when I came to help Carol. I guess when I think of John or Carol I think 'kindness'. If only the world had more quality people like that.
Lori Deuink
July 19, 2021
John will be missed! He was a special person who I had the pleasure of getting to know when I worked for Living At Home Senior Care and came to his and Carol's home several times a week. John and I kept in touch over the years after Carol's passing. It was always wonderful to see a message and a photo from him or hear how his grandson's were, what he was cooking or just what he was up to. Always so upbeat and positive, I'll miss that!
Patricia Lawrence
May 12, 2021
John was a kind and loving man. A good friend indeed. I will miss his passion for wildlife and all the pictures he captured that he sent along via text and email. Many pictures would come at the break of day when the birds were at their glory at the bird feeder. It was always a joy to talk to him. He is truly missed.
Jennifer DiCesare
May 11, 2021
John was one of my favorite customers at the Nashua Trader Joe’s. We became friends and would share photos of hummingbirds, flowers, dogs and more while chatting in the store. Over the last year of the pandemic I got to know him much better through outdoor visits and text correspondence most days. He became such a good friend and I truly enjoyed sharing his love of cooking, bird watching, and just hearing about his days. I loved visiting him for walks- he loved the company especially as I brought my dog along. I will miss him and his true joie de vivre so much.
Carol, Bill, and Julie Follansbee
May 8, 2021
We enjoyed having John as our neighbor at Hollis Crossing. Many days were spent out walking with him where he educated us about the many types of birds and trees. Halloween was a special time every year where John enjoyed decorating, dressing up, and a friendly competition with neighbors. We will miss him and will cherish all the memories. We love to reflect about him through his poems and books he gave us. May he rest in peace.
Gregory Anderson
May 4, 2021
As one of John's neighbors, we were privileged to be able to see him every morning on his walk around the neighborhood. John would make the kids laugh, share his nature photos, leave us flowers and occasionally one of his delicious dishes.
Attached is a picture I grabbed of him at our block party in 2019. We will miss him dearly.
The Anderson's
Erin Parisi
May 1, 2021
In loving memory of a wonderful person. I am sorry to his family for his sudden loss. John was a very interesting and sweet man. He and I shared a passion for birds, animals, nature, jokes (especially Irish ones!) and recipes. The State Street neighborhood will never be the same. I miss him dearly.
May 1, 2021
Please accept my heartfelt condolences on the loss of your loved one, may God give you strength and comfort during this difficult time. (Psalms 46 :1)
Paul Richter
April 30, 2021
I'm very sad to hear of John's passing. I enjoyed very much our conversations about birds and nature. He was a very intelligent man with broad knowledge and interests. I also enjoyed his very well done video series "Nashua Geographic" which can still be found on YouTube. A fine man, who will be missed!
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