Jon Vincent DiBenedetto

He was born October 13, 1951, son of the late Vincent and Jennie (Ruggiero) DiBenedetto. Jon's passing leaves a void impossible to fill in the lives of his sisters, Debi Geffert of Old Saybrook and Teresa Simpson and her spouse, Stephen, of Ellington. Jon also leaves his lovely Aria who brought him so much happiness. He also leaves many cousins and friends who love him and will sorely miss him and grieve at his passing.

Jon had an extensive knowledge of film history ranging from classic cinema to foreign and independent films. He used that knowledge to work in that field and was proud to have helped create and run a film series at the former Pleasant Street Theater in Northampton, MA, as will as at Trinity College's Cinestudio in its earliest days.

Jon faced moments of pain from his illness with courage; but being the sweet person he was, he still managed to be kind to everyone and had a smile for anyone he met.

Anyone who was a friend of Jon, knows that he was not a fan of huge funeral sendoffs and did not want one for himself. He preferred to remember people as they were when they were living.

That is how he wanted to be remembered. The following poem captures beautifully how Jon felt about life and death:

If I should die before the rest of you,

Break not a flower nor inscribe a stone.

Nor, when I'm gone, speak in a Sunday voice,

But be the usual selves that I have known.

Weep if you must. Parting is hell.

But life goes on,

So sing as well.

Burial will be private. Please remember Jon with a prayer and a smile. For those wishing to do so, contributions can be made in his memory to the American Kidney Fund, 11921 Rockville Pike, Suite 300, Rockville, MD 20852