Obituary of John Franssen
John Richard Franssen was born in Roselle, NJ on November 13, 1933 to his parents John Frederick and Julia Futter Franssen. He was the second of three children, and the only son.
After graduating from Abraham Clark High School in Roselle, NJ, John joined the United States Air Force, where he proudly served from 1951-1955. John was a Jet Engine Mechanic during the Korean War. His enthusiasm for and love of planes lasted throughout his entire life.
After service in the military, John followed in his father’s footsteps, and became a plumber. He was a member of Plumber’s Local 24 until his retirement. Plumbing is in the family blood, as his son and grandson make four generations of plumbers that were and are still part of Plumbers Local 24.
While driving his dark green 1949 Ford Convertible in Roselle one spring day, he offered a ride home from school to two women. Lee, the beautiful blonde who flirted with him from the back seat, eventually became his wife of 61 years.
John and Lee had three children: Laurie, John, and Jacqueline. John moved the family from Roselle to Watchung, NJ in 1967 and lived there until the time of his passing on May 5, 2018.
The family owned two German Shephard dogs, Randy and Benny, who were trained and loved immensely by John. He often spoke of his love for his childhood pets, especially his cat Suzie Mittens and the numerous racing pigeons that he raised as a boy.
John built his own CB radios, and eventually became a Ham Radio Operator. Being a night owl, John would talk to people from all over the world well into the night.
In addition to operating Ham Radios, John enjoyed financial investing, cars, and music. He enjoyed riding with Lee to a local airport and watching the planes take off and land. He loved college football, Penn State, Italian food, and raspberry ice cream!
Everyone who knew John was aware of his passion for planes, his patriotism and support of the military, his interest in people, his sense of humor, and Johnson Control!
John is survived by his wife Leone, two sisters Marion and Janet, his children Laurie, John, Jackie and son-in-law Mark. John has 5 grandchildren: Kristen, Kevin, Hannah, Jake and Adelai, and two great grandchildren: Aspen and Winter.
Family and friends mourn his passing.
He will be remembered with love for the rest of our lives.
