John R. Chunko, 63, of Wilson Borough, died Thursday, March 18, 2021 in St. Luke’s Hospice House. Born July 6, 1957 in Easton, he was a son of the late Louis and Julia (Haschak) Chunko. He and his wife, Deborah (Patterson) Chunko were married 40 years.
John was a supervisor at Lafayette College for over 40 years and was a member of Citizen’s Hose Co. and the Order of Fleas.
Surviving with his wife, Deborah, are his daughter, Lori Chunko, three sisters, Charlotte Miller, Sue Schmeltzly and Helen Chunko and two brothers, Joseph Chunko and Robert Chunko.
A visitation will be held from 10:00 to 11:00 am on Friday, March 26, 2021 in the Ashton Funeral Home, 1337 Northampton St., Easton. Services will be private. Interment will be in Union Cemetery of Hellertown.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Luke’s Hospice House, www.slhn.org/development.
Offer online condolences at www.AshtonFuneralHome.com.
Bette Seveney
March 23, 2021 at 9:37 am
Dear Sue. I’m sorry to read about the passing of your brother. Please accept my deepest sympathy. May God be with you through this difficult time. Take care and God bless.
Mary kostolanci jones
March 25, 2021 at 5:58 am
Chunko family, so very sorry to hear of your loss, my prayers are with the family.
Sandi Davis
March 25, 2021 at 6:08 am
So sorry for your loss I knew John from working at Lafayette he will be missed
Nancy McCreary Waters
March 25, 2021 at 6:51 am
I am so saddened to hear of John’s passing! As a fellow employee at Lafayette, he always and ever had a smile on his face and a kind word to say. For a spell he was in Kunkel regularly and I would enjoy our occasional chats about the College, the community and the world. He had a genuine and positive attitude, one that is often absent these days. My condolences to his family for being taken too young. I hope you are comforted by the memories you share.
Margarete Lamb-Faffelberger
March 25, 2021 at 7:57 am
I am saddened to hear of John’s passing. I remember him fondly for always being friendly and kind. Often when I needed the Max Kade Center in Pardee Hall cleaned or the new Max Kade Haus set up for an academic event he would come personally to my office to make sure that everything would be done right. I could always rely on his professionalism.
My sincere sympathies to John’s family.
Elaine Reynolds
March 25, 2021 at 8:30 am
Reading about John’s passing saddened me. He was such an integral part of our campus community and I enjoyed getting to know him over the years. He was always happy to talk and listen and he worked to form bridges between people at the college. Such a great guy! My condolences for this tremendous loss for your family and I hope you may find peace in these tributes and your memories.
Jennifer Bogari
March 25, 2021 at 9:02 am
Debbie and Lori,
Sincerest sympathies.
Saddened to read of John’s passing.
~Jennifer
Nadda Pavlinsky
March 25, 2021 at 9:43 am
I’m so sorry to hear of John’s passing. We worked for Plant Operations at Lafayette for many years together. He was always very helpful. May your wonderful memories of him help you through this difficult time. Sending you prayers and May He Rest in Peace.
Kathy Hahn
March 25, 2021 at 10:37 am
Debbie and Lori,
So sorry to here of John’s passing. He will missed and remembered.
Jennifer Kumetz
March 25, 2021 at 12:54 pm
Sincere condolences. John will always hold a space in my heart for giving me a chance to start my life over and become part of the Lafayette community. He was always willing to listen and treated his employees with respect. He instilled work habits and expectations that I still carry through today. His loss will be deeply felt. Sending my sympathy and thoughts to his family.
Brad Antanaitis
March 28, 2021 at 8:05 pm
I am truly and deeply sorry to learn of John’s passing. For many years John was a real presence roaming the halls of then Ohlin Hall (now the Hugel Hall of Science) as he competently carried out his duties as the main custodian in our building. In my early years as an assistant professor of physics “bumping” into John was often one of the highlights of my day. He was invariably friendly, cheerfully affable and genuinely responsive to requests that I or any other member of the Physics faculty made of him. Equally impressive, he often returned after completing a job and asked if I was satisfied. Because he took great pride in his work I was always more than satisfied! Numerous conversations with coworkers and faculty revealed another facet of his sterling character: He cared deeply about his fellow employees and when he ascended to positions of increasing responsibility he chose primarily to lead by example . A recurrent theme in our almost daily conversations was the importance of teamwork. As a dedicated team member he modestly and competently went about doing what had to be done and then some, inspiring others to do the same. John, I shall miss you as will many others fortunate enough to have gotten to know you and see you in action.
Nancy Canti
April 8, 2021 at 2:09 pm
Dear Debbie, I am very sorry to read of your husband’s passing.My sincere sympathy is extended to you and your family at this sad time. Even though I did not know him I remember you well from the years we worked together at The Care Center of Phillipsburg.
Nancy Canti