U.S. Navy Veteran John Davidson Spelman Jr. Dies

U.S. Navy Veteran John Davidson Spelman Jr. Dies

John Davidson Spelman Jr. passed away on June 8, 2025, at the Pavilion Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Hyannis after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. He was born in Providence, RI, on November 9, 1947, the son of John D. and Margaret (Minor) Spelman.

 

Upon graduating from Cranston High School East, John enlisted in the United States Navy and honorably served his country as a radioman on the USS Chilton in the Mediterranean and in Guantanamo. Following his military service, John returned to Rhode Island and was an injection molding specialist at Davol where his father had also worked. He continued in the plastics industry at KAO in Plymouth and later at Acushnet Company/Titleist. John worked at Cranberry Valley Golf Course in Harwich after he retired from Acushnet.

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He was a member of the Hyannis Golf Course and played in their Quota League. Always a fan of the Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, and Providence College basketball, John joined the Cape Cod Kennel Club when he was showing his dalmatians, Buster and Boomer.

 

John is survived by his wife of 36 years, Kathleen (nee Meenan) Spelman; his four sisters who reside in Davenport, FL, Ann-Marie, Virginia, Eileen, and Margaret; his step-daughter and her husband, Jennifer and George DesRoches of Warwick. He was predeceased by his parents.

 

Interment with military honors is scheduled for Monday, August 25 at 11:30 a.m. at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne.