John Salvatore Papandrea

John Salvatore Papandrea, age 90, of Southington, passed away peacefully on February 4, 2025, at the Hospital of Central Connecticut with loving granddaughter at his side. John was born March 31, 1934, in Meriden, Connecticut, born to the late Vincenzo "James" and Rose Papandrea.

John was proud of his upbringing in Meriden and graduated from Meriden High School in 1952. In 1957 he decided to join the United States Army where he served for two years stationed in Alaska as a cook clerk. John married his beloved late wife, Irene (Zavatkay) Papandrea in 1961 and they lived out their 43 years together in Southington with their two sons John and Jim.

John dedicated 39 years to his work, first as a butcher, then grocer and lastly liquor sales manager at several A&P stores throughout Connecticut. Retirement came at a good time for John as he could now spend time doing the things he loved but most importantly, he provided support and care to his wife, Irene until she passed away. John spent much of his time in the kitchen cooking or baking from recipes he cut out or photocopied from various articles and books. He enjoyed making pizza on Fridays to share with friends, lasagna for every holiday and different fish dishes through lent. John was often found outside tinkering about, fixing things or collecting broken items that could be used later to fix something else. John loved his yard, and worked diligently to ensure every blade of grass, leaf or snowflake was immediately addressed and kept orderly. One of John’s biggest joys was his garden, he grew faithfully every summer. He grew a plethora of flowers, fruits and vegetables that he would use to cook with later or give to friends and neighbors accompanied with cooking instructions. John enjoyed his bus trips to the casino to make his contributions to the penny slots and to check out the free buffet that came with the ticket. John was a devout Catholic and attended mass regularly at Mary Our Queen Church in Plantsville and then virtually as his mobility and health changed. His prayers stayed loud and frequent for those he knew best and those he didn’t know at all. Although John loved being home, he would travel to see friends and family. He had the opportunity to travel to Italy to experience the homeland of his parents and out west to the National Parks of Arizona, New Mexico, Navada with his granddaughter, Lauren.

John’s memories will be cherished by his loved ones, his two sons, John Papandrea (Lisa) of Byron, ME and Jim Papandrea of Chesire, CT, his granddaughter Lauren (Papandrea) Smith (Ryan) of East Hampton, CT, his sister Rose (Papandrea) Egan of Southington, CT, and nephew Stephen Loo (Connie) and great nieces Stephanie and Sophia of CA. John was also predeceased by his sister Josephine (Papandrea) Loo and brother-in-law Ghee Loo and brother-in-law Robert Egan.

A special thank you to his wonderful friends who helped and supported John like he was family throughout his life and especially in the last 2 years making it possible for him to stay home- Phil and Tabitha, Jacqueline, Mike and Michelle and Melisa to name just a few. The family would like to extend a thank you to Honor Alert, the Southington Police Department and varies Emergency Response companies and personnel for providing support and assistance every late night and early morning, the Hospital of Central Connecticut medical staff and the Hartford Healthcare at Home Hospice Team for the coordination of person-centered care and compassion.

Calling hours will be announced at a later date. Please check back to the funeral home website for updates regarding services.

The DellaVecchia Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements.