John E. Spencer, 65, of New Bedford died October 20, 2017 at McCarthy Care Center after a long illness.
Born in New Bedford, the son of Dolores L. (Carmo) Spencer of Fairhaven and the late Edward B. Spencer, he lived in New Bedford, Fairhaven, Long Island and Taunton.
John was a proud graduate of New Bedford Voc-Tech and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boston College. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserves for 9 and a half years.
He was formerly employed as a skilled machinist for many years until his retirement.
He was proud of his 24 years of sobriety and he enjoyed helping others on their road to recovery. He enjoyed fishing, reading, drawing, singing, guitar playing and African drumming.
Survivors include his mother; a brother, Rev. David Spencer, PhD and his wife Darlene,
sisters, Anita Berryman and her husband LeRoy of New Bedford and Ellen Gifford and her husband Michael of Fairhaven; and his step-children, Jessica, Eli Joseph and James Gabriele. John also leaves behind several nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, lifelong friends, Janet Lang, Debra DeVaughn, Bill and Norma Souto and many other good friends. John was especially close to his uncle William doCarmo and his favorite cousin Lydia Murphy.
His visiting hours will be held on Tuesday, October 24th from 4-8 PM in the Saunders-Dwyer Home For Funerals, 495 Park St. New Bedford with a prayer service at 7 PM. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Oncology, 330 Brookline Ave., Boston, MA 02215 or to Shriners Hospitals for Children, 51 Blossom St., Boston, MA 02114.