John Arthur D’Ambrogio of Oxnard/Ventura aged 87 passed away peacefully at home on April 9, 2023, from complications of Lymphoma Cancer. He was an outstanding husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, friend, brother, and uncle.
John was born in Petaluma, California on November 11, 1935, to Arthur and Jeanette D’Ambrogio and was raised in the nearby town of Novato. John attended San Rafael High School. He joined the Navy to ‘see the world’ and made it all the way to an exotic place called Port Hueneme. When he was about to be shipped out, his commanding officer changed the order as John was not only a great baseball player, but he could type 85 words per minute! He met the love of his life, Marva Sue Winters while working at the Sea Bee base. The couple married August 14, 1955, in Saticoy. They lived briefly in Northern California where their first son, Dennis, was born, before moving to Oxnard where they had two more children; Desiree and Doug. Marva passed away in July of 2012 after nearly 57 years of marriage.
John was a carpenter by trade and loved to work with wood. He received his contractor’s license in 1969. He was a General Contractor in the Ventura County area until his retirement in 2002. Even after his retirement, he continued hanging doors throughout the County and was well known for his skill and craftmanship. He played fast pitch softball for 19 years in Oxnard – a ‘ringer’ for the Phone Company. He coached/managed his sons in little league and is still remembered by some of the boys he coached to this day. His hobbies included bicycling, cooking, and playing the Ukulele. He loved music – especially Jazz and ‘the Blues’. He was a sports fan - he loved to talk baseball and his teams were the San Francisco Giants and 49ers. He and Marva were involved in their children’s activities and were active members of the Rio Mesa High School Booster Club for 16 years. Along with his wife they RV’ed across the United States and Canada and camped with the Elks ‘Kampers’ group. John was a member of the Thousand Oaks Elks Lodge, was a Past Exalted Ruler (PER), and was the ‘Breadman’ extraordinaire on one of the Barbeque wagon crews.
He was very involved with his grandsons - getting them set up in their dorms/apartments when they went away to college. We had some great road trips, and he was a master at putting things together. He attended numerous sporting events, and along with our mother, organized dinners and parties for their sports teams and fund-raising efforts.
Family and friends were very important to John, and we will always cherish our family holiday celebrations and weekly dinners. He made his own pasta and bread and shared his homemade items with others. He loved to try new recipes and watched all kinds of different cooking shows. Later in life, he traveled to Italy, went on a ukulele cruise to the Mexican Rivera, and to Kauai, Hawaii for his grandson’s destination wedding. He treasured his trips to San Rafael and Novato to visit his sisters and family a few times a year. He was known and loved by so many because he took the time to talk to people and help them out when he could.
He is survived by his son Dennis D’Ambrogio (Tina) of San Francisco/Clear Lake, daughter Desiree Peckham (Phil) of Ventura, son Doug D’Ambrogio (Lisa) of Ventura, grandsons Trevor Peckham (Britt and great granddaughter, Quinn) of Seattle, WA, Jon Peckham (Julia) of Phoenix, AZ, and granddaughter Karyssa D’Ambrogio (great granddaughter, Madyson) of West Hills. John will also be missed by his sister, Yvonne (Vonnie) Sasse of San Rafael, CA and numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur and Jeanette D’Ambrogio of Novato, CA, his wife, Marva D’Ambrogio, and sisters Elaine Miragon, and Lorraine (Lorrie) Kidder.
Memorial services will be held on Saturday, May 20, 2023, at Boyko & Reardon Telegraph Road Mortuary, 51 Teloma St., Ventura at 4 pm. A celebration of life will be held in his honor at the Thousand Oaks Elks Lodge, 158 North Conjeo School Road, Thousand Oaks, immediately following the memorial service at 6 pm. A special thanks and appreciation go to the staff of Livingston Memorial Hospice. Many thanks to the Gamron Family for their love and support. In lieu of sending flowers the family asking that you donate to the American Cancer Society or Livingston Memorial Hospice.