John Robert Bunch

1969 - 2022

John Robert Bunch
August 10, 1969 - May 25, 2022
Resident of Sacramento
John. Bobby. John Bob. Bob Dog. John Bob Dog. Jonnie Bobby. John Bobula. Uncle Bobby.
So many names because so many people were able to love him in so many ways. John left us quietly in his sleep early in the morning on Wednesday, May 25.
Many of us shared a meal, a drink, or a cigarette with him over the years. These moments were always paired with great stories, raucous laughter, and deep, heartfelt hugs. Ultimately his body succumbed to his vices, but that doesn't take away from the life he lived, the joy he spread, and the love that we all shared with him.
Born and raised in Orange County, John graduated from Mater Dei High School. He attended UC Santa Cruz where he shared a dorm room and a beach house with his nephew and best friend, Jason Moore of San Francisco. A quietly gay man, John was the life of the party, and amazed his college friends by being the tough-guy enforcer when parties went awry.
John shared his musical interests, turning his family and all their friends on to The Devil Makes Three and Here Kitty Kitty. He had impeccable taste. He knew fine fashion, He was an amazing cook and possessed a refined palate for the world's best wines. Yet at the same time, he was probably the most comfortable in jeans and a white T-Shirt, holding a PBR, watching the Sharks with his friends.
His 20+ years in Santa Cruz were the happiest times of his life, where he managed and bartended at the Blue Lagoon, volunteered at the Santa Cruz AIDS Project, attended Cabrillo College, and eventually earned his bachelor's degree in psychology from UCSC.
He was a well-read intellectual and a confidant for many. You could talk to John. He wouldn't judge you. He knew that life didn't deal everyone an equal hand, and he was always there to support any of us who needed it.
During the last ten years he worked as a pharmacy technician in Sacramento, working every day on the front lines during the COVID pandemic. During this time, he developed a closer relationship with his sister, Becky, and her husband, Eddy who supported him through a difficult time in his life. Growing closer to his family, he created a phone tree of his relatives, keeping us all connected during the sad time of isolation.
He was a gem. A one of a kind. A unicorn. We miss him.
John is survived by his mother Rose Bunch, 92, of Kingston, Tennessee, three sisters, two brothers, a quiver full of nieces and nephews, and an immense chosen family who miss him dearly.
A celebration of Uncle John Bob Dog's awesomeness will be held at Parish Publick House, 8017 Soquel Dr., Aptos, CA on Saturday, September 17, 4:00pm – 7:00pm. All are invited. Please come and help us remember and celebrate this great man.


View the online memorial for John Robert Bunch