Obituary of John William Mattis

It is with tremendous sadness that the family of John William Mattis announces his sudden passing.

John William Mattis of Buchanan, NY, left us unexpectedly on April 10, 2019. He was born in Erie, PA, in January, 1947, to Joseph F. and Martha Mattis.

John graduated from Gannon University with a BS in Industrial Management and continued to be an enthusiastic Gannon booster and active member of the alumni association.  In 1969, he moved to Yonkers, NY, received an MBA from Fordham University, and went on to work in the airline and investment banking industries and as a financial planner.

Residing in Westchester for 50 years, John came to the Town of Cortlandt in 1973. A lifelong Catholic, John attended the Church of St. Christopher and St. Patrick from the time he moved to Montrose that year. He was a valued member of the community, joining numerous civic, governmental, and non-profit groups. Within these organizations, he immersed himself completely and took on leadership roles.

John was a long-time Peekskill Rotarian, and member of the Board of Directors. Through the Rotary, he was heavily involved in fund raising efforts and volunteering at the annual Horse Show, at the Cherry Blossom Festival, and as a Salvation Army Bell ringer. In addition, he served on the Keon Center Board of Directors, volunteered at the Danish Home, Blue Path Service Dogs, Habitat for Humanity, and Recycled Paws, was a West Point sports volunteer and employee, and was a member of the Hendrick Hudson High School Athletic Hall of Fame Committee.

John served for decades on the Cortland Zoning Board (including many years as Chairman), as well as the Westchester Legislature Board of Directors Charter Revision Commission and Budget & Finance Focus Group, and the Westchester County Compensation Advisory Board. He also volunteered on numerous Republican Party campaigns.

An avid baseball fan, John worked with author Roger Kahn and former player/coach/broadcaster Dave Nelson performing baseball related field research. He was a walking encyclopedia of baseball trivia. Over the years, he was a marathon runner, tennis player, golfer, and talented photographer, and he loved NASCAR. John enjoyed travel, having flown to places around the globe such as Hawaii, Italy, France, Germany, England, Japan, China, and Hong Kong during his days as an airline employee in the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, he embarked on an excursion to Ireland and took a cruise to Alaska.

For the last decade, John extended his community of friends to the shores of Lake Norman in North Carolina. He relished hiking in the parks around the lake, bird watching from the docks, or simply drinking a glass of wine with friends. He enriched a number of lives there with his involvement in the local Habitat for Humanity chapter.

John’s extended family was an enormous part of this life, and he traveled frequently to Erie and Philadelphia to take part in holidays and special occasions.

He is survived by his daughter, Kristine Mattis (husband Carl), twin brother, Joseph Mattis (wife Patricia), sisters Caroline Swanson and Lois Castaldi (husband Thomas), nieces Susan Cannon (husband Steve), Mary Mattis, Christine Grindle (husband Paul), and Sharon West (husband Braden), and nephews Robert Castaldi (wife Colleen), John Patrick Swanson (wife Molly), Michael Mattis (wife Andrea), and Andrew Castaldi.

Memorial Service celebrating a life well lived will be held at the Joseph F. Nardone funeral home on Wednesday, April 24, 2019 from 4:00pm to 8:00pm.

Memorial Mass to be celebrated at St. Patrick's Church, Verplanck, NY on Thursday, April 25, 2019 at 10:00am.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Habitat for Humanity, Blue Path Service Dogs, or the Rotary Club of Peekskill.