John Sally

John Sally passed away on February 1, 2021 at the age of 86. He was born on October 21, 1934 in Vanceburg, Kentucky and was the son of Lutie McCoy and John Clarence Graham. He was later adopted by Raymond Fredric Sally. He is survived by daughter Cindy Sally Meffert, his son-in-law Bob Meffert, his three grandchildren; Carrie Meffert Roe, Jonathan Meffert, and Ashley Meffert Chemell and his nine great-grandchildren; Reece, Claire, and Riggs Roe, Eli and Silas Meffert, and Allegra, Liam, Lennox, and Luca Chemell. John also has a deceased son named Christopher Allen Sally.

John lived a very full life and will be remembered for his love of people and vivacious personality. He was a storyteller and loved to reminisce about his younger days in the Navy and the adventures it afforded him. One of his favorite activities was fishing. He loved to fish and had even written a guide that provided extensive information on fishing at lakes and rivers across the country. Among his other accomplishments, he completed the Sheriff’s Academy in 1975 and had a degree from Cerra Costa Community College.

John was very proud of his career in the Navy and serving his country. He enlisted as a young man in June 1952 in San Francisco, California. He spent most of his career in the Navy, stationed at many naval bases across the country. He became a Chief Petty Officer and was a decorated war hero. He proudly served in both the Korean War and the Vietnam War, spending four tours in Vietnam. He worked as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) expert during this time and was chief over a 12 man squad that was called the “Dirty Dozen”. He was proud of the fact that they did not lose a single person on his squad during his time of active duty. His team was credited with mining Phnom Penh Harbor during the Vietnam War. He also served on the USS Yorktown during his service and his team was responsible for protecting the Potomac River as part of White House security. He received numerous medals for his courageous service including: the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the National Defense Service Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, Meritorious Unit Commendation, Combat Action Ribbon, and the Vietnam Service Medal. During his time in the service, he became a qualified naval diver and was a Frogman before they created the Navy Seals.

He retired from the Navy in July 1973 after being disabled through service to his country. When he retired from the Navy, he contracted his expertise back to the Navy as an Engineering Technician and then moved on to work at the Comarco Aerospace Company as a Reliability/Safety Engineer. He eventually went into business for himself, owning a cell phone company. When he permanently retired, he settled down in Sierra Vista, Arizona but had recently moved to South Carolina to be closer to his family.

John will be missed greatly. He and his legacy will be remembered fondly and proudly by his family and friends.

Per John’s wishes, he will be cremated and will receive an honorary ceremony at The Arlington National Cemetery. He will also have some of his ashes buried next to the love of his life, Thelma N. Sally (Nan) at Desert View Memorial Park in Victorville, California. They will also be spread at the final resting place of his son and mother.