John Dean Sundburg

John Dean Sundburg, 90, of Priest River, Idaho passed away May 2, 2016. John was born in West Springfield, Mass., the son of Edward and Anna Sundburg. He moved to Longmeadow, Mass where he graduated from Classical High School in Springfield, Mass. He joined the Army and served two years and was honorably discharged in July of 1946. He then went to Cornell University in Ithaca, New York where he graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1950. His first job with for a tire company in Chicopee Falls, Mass where he met and married his wife Doris. In 1960 John went to work at American Optical where he was the Lab manager of 100 field labs throughout the country. In 1981 the lab division was sold and he was given early retirement. He then took a job at Coburn Optical in Colonial Heights, Virginia. They were bought out by Revlon Cosmetics in 1989 and he then retired to live at Southwick, Mass. During retirement years he became an avid short story writer and his stories were frequently published in local papers. His wife Doris died in 2005. He leaves a son, Alan from Arlington, Virginia; and a brother Edward of Rockwood, Maine. In 2008 he met Marjorie Van Natter who also graduated from Classical High in Mass and had left Southwick to come to Idaho. They became good friends and he loved the mountains, the trees and the slower pace of life here. He was happy he had made the move. No local services are planned. However memorial contributions may be made in his name to the West Bonner Library District, Priest River Branch, 118 Main St., Priest River, ID 83856.