Calvin John Markey

Calvin John Markey entered peacefully into eternal rest at home surrounded and cared for by his loving family and wife of 64 years, Barbara. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Cal was the youngest of three children born to Walter and Caroline. He was a Great Depression baby and his family may have been short on money but not on love.

Upon graduation from Creighton Prep, Cal joined the Navy and was stationed in San Diego. He fell in love with California and its warm weather. He returned to Omaha where his skills on the railroad as a fireman and engineer were more needed during wartime. During this time, he met the love of his life, Barbara, while they were on a double date--and not with each other! (This was an accomplishment he was quite proud of.) It was meant to be and they were married shortly thereafter.

With four children under age 5, Cal and Barbara migrated west to San Jose, California. He worked as a Court Reporter for the Santa Clara County Superior Court until his retirement 33 years later. Four children quickly followed and, as if raising 8 children and working a full time job were not enough, Cal attended and graduated Law School, fulfilling his dream of obtaining a formal education beyond high school.

Upon his retirement from the County, he kept busy manning the info desk at the County Building. He served as President of the Retired Public Employee Association and was named Member of the Year. He developed their first website and cherished his title as "WebMaster." Cal enjoyed anything that involved learning something new. He was passionate about his Irish heritage and became an expert in geneology, meeting up with distant relatives via the internet and in person. He greatly enjoyed spending time at his family cabin in Lake Tahoe and was always busy with a home improvement project there.

Without a doubt, Cal's greatest passion was his family; his children, many nieces and nephews, and especially his 20 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren. Nothing brought a smile to his face quicker than spending time with the grandkids. They looked forward to listening to his animated stories of the mischief he got into as an adolescent and often felt their lives paled in comparison to his. He shared his secret stash of candy and cookies with them and was known to let them eat ice cream out of the carton. He had an ability to make everyone laugh and feel accepted and loved beyond compare. The family values Cal instilled in his children will be carried on through generations. He will be dearly missed.

Cal is survived by his wife Barbara, children Patrick (Ginger), Brian (Marla), Bill, Sharon, Michele (Paul Murphy), Tim (Kathy), Dan (Geri) and 20 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his son, Mark Gordon Markey.

Family and friends are invited to attend a Rosary at 7 pm Mon. June 27th, with a viewing preceding from 5-7 pm, at Lima Family Mortuary, 466 N. Winchester Blvd., Santa Clara. A Mass will be celebrated Tuesday, June 28th at 11 am at St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church, 200 O'Connor Drive, San Jose, CA.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Kaiser Santa Clara Hospice, 3900 Freedom Circle Dr, Ste 201, Santa Clara, CA 95054 or a charity of choice.