John D. Garry

Garry, John D.
EAST BERNE - John D. Garry of Galway, formerly of East Berne, passed away comfortably at home, on January 17, 2025, after some long illnesses. He was the beloved husband of Letitia (Tish) Dovhan. He was born in Albany, October 4, 1938, to Francis (Sonny) and Marjorie (Gallup) Garry of East Berne. The Hungarian family name had been Gergulik. They then moved to Milford, Pa. and Bloomfield, N.J., before settling back in East Berne, purchasing a farm that had been part of the Van Rensselaer estate, complete with the historical deeds. He worked hard on the farm starting as a young boy, helping with the garden and animals, keeping the fire going to smoke meat in the smokehouse or his father would get after him, and taking hay with the three of them and Topsy, their dog, squeezed in the cab of their battered old truck pulling the hay wagon. John, as a teenager, helped his father build a new house for the family on their property across the street, using wood from trees they cut down themselves, and had planed at a local mill. Sonny then sold most of the rest of the property. John worked summers mowing and maintaining Camp Woodstock, and also worked on Ed Pitcher's farm. He had two horses, a Palomino and a Paint, that he loved to ride until embarking on a love affair with cars, racing them, rebuilding them and buying new ones, eventually including many Saabs for JoAnn and himself. And after finally picking a winning stock, he got a 2000 Corvette. John's father had previously taken over his wife's father's heating, plumbing and wiring business. When his health started to deteriorate, he renamed it Francis J. Garry & Son, when John joined him in the business. What he didn't learn from his father, he learned from his grandfather, that sometimes you had to cobble parts together. His mother, who had been valedictorian of her class, helped him with his homework as, although he excelled in math and science, he had trouble reading and spelling. She would read books for him that he had to write or give oral reports on. He had a great memory and wouldn't study for tests, fearing he would confuse what he had already memorized from class discussion. Although he had never been diagnosed, it's likely he was dyslexic. Despite that and getting in trouble in classes because he was bored, John graduated as salutatorian of his 1956 class at Berne Knox Westerlo with a GPA of only .25 behind the valedictorian. At graduation, John took high honors in math, and won the driver training award for most courteous and sportsmanlike conduct, which was met with snickering from his classmates. He always credited his math teacher, Alberta Wright, for challenging him to bring out his math prowess. But actually with his debating ability, she always thought he should have been a lawyer. John was hesitant to attend college with all the required reading, but he did enroll in and complete at the top of his class the three year General Electric Apprentice Program followed by the two year Manufacturing Management Program, Including night studies. A math class that he didn't take in high school was calculus, and when he found out he needed it for work, he got a book and taught himself in two weekends. John's jobs at GE included night foreman in the Large Steam Turbine Generator Bucket Shop supervising 85 hourly, planning jobs, manufacturing engineer and later supervisor for the production of pumps, packing and miscellaneous parts used in the production of electricity.
During his tenure at GE, he engineered and purchased over $5 million of equipment to manufacture steam parts for power plants, improved productivity and cut operating costs. When faced with downsizing due to Union labor overpricing, he investigated and chose farm out suppliers around the country for much of the equipment/processes that he originally had purchased, installed and developed. John was knowledgeable and creative, and was rewarded for some of his ideas. He said his father could make a trailer out of a piece of metal, but while he himself couldn't produce that, he could modify it to be more useful. He was a problem solver and innovative in looking for ways to improve how products worked.
When John married JoAnn Stewart in 1963, with his father's help, they built their new home, next door on part of the farm property. After his father passed away in 1965, John continued his business, including installing furnaces, to serve the Hilltowns for over 30 years. He also opened and closed the water to many summer camps at the local Hilltown lakes. He later built a four car garage with two apartments upstairs next door to his house. His mother sold her home and moved into one of the apartments. He was a member of the Turbine Supervisors Association, GE Quarter Century Club and Vettes in Perfection Corvette Club. Being a Yankees fan from his youth, he attended his first game by buying a ticket off a hawker on the streets of New York by the stadium. He was a fan of Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera and Tom Brady of the Patriots. John was a great husband and father. He had two sons, Robert and Steven, with JoAnn. He kept the business going to improve their life style, give them the opportunity to learn practical necessities from it and to ensure they could attend good colleges. Rob graduated from Union College and the GE Apprentice Program and retired as Executive Chief Engineer and VP of Product Security for GE Verona in Greenville, S.C. His wife, Christine Modafferi, is a school psychologist. They have two daughters, Hannah in Finance and Eve in Civil Engineering; and a son, Jake, a high school student and accomplished swimmer and skier. Steve graduated from Hudson Valley CC, Clarkson University and University of Vermont. He is a Department Supervisor in the Turf Care Division of John Deere in Fuquay-Varina, N.C. His wife Jenny worked in marketing. They have a daughter Becca, a high school student and accomplished equestrian. He went snowmobiling and vacationed with his family and friends, played golf with the boys and displayed a good work ethic. He helped out his Uncle George and Aunt Martha Garry with their property. He spent many hours expanding Aunt Marge's (Dr. Smith) and Uncle Harry Garry's house to accommodate her new doctor's office. And provided much help with Harry's dairy barn and farm. John married Tish in 1996, an Admin at GE from the Manufacturing, Engineering and Wind/Solar departments. He resettled in Galway on a 100 acre farm that her father's parents bought 105 years ago after they immigrated from the Ukraine to NYC. It was the childhood home of Joseph Henry, a prominent physicist from the 1800's. The unit of induction is named after him. John was introduced to golf by coworkers and became, like most everything else he tried and liked, pretty proficient. He eventually taught himself to repair and make custom clubs. He joined three golf leagues at GE, including the Megawatt league, which he was president of for 17 years. After retirement, he joined McGregor Links Country Club in Gansevoort for 20 years. He had time shares and played golf in Orlando and Phoenix and recorded three holes-in-one at various golf courses. He attended his BKW class reunions and enjoyed reminiscing about his school days with former classmates. He especially enjoyed his time visiting his children/grandchildren and dining out. Old practices he hung on to were pocket protectors and real cotton handkerchiefs. But he was the first in line when they came out with computers and cell phones. He was always willing to try new technology.
After retirement, even though he had been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, he didn't let that interfere with his life until recently. His five by-passes in 2012 served him well until this January. He was predeceased by his parents, beloved childhood dog Topsy, East Berne dogs Flash and Pepper, and Edgar the cat, in Galway. Leaves behind Little Edgar. If you knew John, you knew he was a tenacious guy and never stopped talking and telling jokes but would extend his help if needed. The family wants to thank Hospice for providing their help, initially in the form of palliative care, and for our wonderful nurses Maura, Julie, Jennifer, Alison and Lori. For five and a half years, before and during Hospice care, the family especially wants to thank caregiver nurses Shauntelle, Kathy 1 and Kathy 2 for their compassionate and loving care of John. They also had a lot of fun with him. Donations may be made to Community Hospice-Saratoga & Washington Counties, 179 Lawrence St., Saratoga Springs, N.Y. 12866 or the Eddy Alzheimer's Services, 421 Columbia St., Cohoes, N.Y. 12047. There will be a celebration of life on Saturday, July 26, at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, 400 Saratoga Rd. (Rte. 50), Glenville. Calling hours start at 11:00 a.m., with a service at 12:30 p.m. Arrangements were entrusted to the Richard J. Ryan Funeral Home of Galway. You may view and leave messages on their website, richardjryanfuneral.com