||| FROM ANNETTE MAZZARELLA |||
John Anthony Mazzarella.
John Anthony Mazzarella was born the first of three sons to Eleanor Fiorito Mazzarella and Anthony Mazzarella in Queens, New York. Although he lived most of his life in Seattle and on Orcas Island, he never left his New York roots.
John graduated from Stuyvesant High School in 1949, from Trinity College in 1953, and from Cornell Medical School in 1957. He was an alternate on the USA men’s fencing team for the 1952 Olympics, played drums in a band during college, and worked while putting himself through high school, college, and medical school.
He married Denise LeClair while in medical school, and sons Anthony (1957), John Mark (1959) and Paul (1961) followed.
He served in the U.S. Public Health Service after his internship at Rochester, and was sent to a pediatric unit in Miami just in time to be the only available Public Health Officer when refugees from Cuba began arriving on Miami beaches. His assignment was to set up medical care for the Cubans, which he did by drafting Cuban doctors who had fled Castro.
He finished his Public Health Service by helping develop remote EKG monitoring for the first astronauts.
He studied cardiology as a resident at the University of Washington during the “golden age” of cardiology: Bob Bruce was developing the first treadmill test, pacemakers were being invented, and cardiac catheterization provided a map for coronary artery bypass surgery. In the early 1970s, John, along with Werner Samson, and Arthur Anderson founded the Seattle Heart Clinic where he practice until 1990. The last years of his professional life were focused on setting up cardiac rehabilitation programs.
In 1980 he married Annette. Their daughter Eleanora was born in 1981. Starting a new family was followed by starting a new band, with friend and fellow doctor Terry Rogers. “The Ain’t No Heaven Seven” was made up of six doctors and one ringer. They played Dixieland jazz together for more than 20 years.
In 1988, he followed another passion — sailing. He took a year’s leave of absence from his practice to sail with his wife and daughter to the South Pacific. It was a life changing experience and led, ten years later, to Orcas Island.
Orcas was his final destination.
For 23 years, John gardened like his Italian grandfather, acted with the Actors Theater of Orcas Island, played tennis, sailed from Seattle to Alaska and back to Mexico, and started a men’s group. This group originated from his regular lunches with Dick Griot at the Orcas Hotel. Eventually grew into the Thursday Men’s Luncheon group. As originally conceived, there was to be no agenda, no qualifications, no solicitations, no community service, and no women! It is still going on today.
At age 87, the same age as his father and grandfather, his bright flame was extinguished and he left the world with a huge void. He is survived by his brothers, Francis Xavier and Vincent; his sons Anthony, John Mark and Paul; Anthony’s wife Susan and their four children, Michael, Mathew, Michelle and Mark; by his daughter Eleanora and her husband Carlo Bertani, and their three sons Anthony, Vincent, and Lucca; and by his wife Annette.
John will be remembered by all of us for his charisma, his caring, and his ability to bring people together. He was always willing to help with selfless advice, warmth, humor, and joy.
He was a Master in the Art of Living!
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Mazz was a true Renaissance Man. He was also a private pilot. I taught him how to fly. Along the way we became good friends. Mazz and I could go on forever talking about anything and everything. I will miss him dearly.
Dr. Mazz was a gift to all who knew him; you could just tell. Although I only knew Dr. John Mazzarella for a few years, we shared a unique relationship. There will be another like him.