A husband for one. A father of four. A relative and friend of many. John Francis Saeli, Sr. of Warwick, NY, passed away on June 18, 2026 at Villa Marie Claire residential hospice. He was 94 years old.
Born in Brooklyn on March 21, 1932, John was the son of Anthony and Giovanna (nee Crimi) Saeli. Giovanna emigrated to the United States from Sicily at age five in 1902 and Anthony’s parents emigrated from Sicily in 1893. Anthony was a physician in general practice who treated his patients both at an office in his home on Highlawn Avenue in Brooklyn and through house calls until he was almost 80. Giovanna was an opera singer before marrying Anthony and becoming a homemaker. Anthony and Giovanna had three sons, with John being the youngest. John’s brothers pre-deceased him, with Anthony passing away in a car accident at age 19 and Richard passing away at age 86.
John was first educated at local public schools and then at Poly Prep from 7th to 12th grade. He earned a pre-med degree at Georgetown, followed by study of dentistry in Milwaukee and medicine in Rome.
John’s career was devoted to medical research as a biochemist, initially at Sloan Kettering and primarily at the Veterans Administration Hospital in the Bronx. He worked for two doctors over 30 years at the VA and with many doctors from around the world.
A lifelong baseball fan, John avidly rooted for the Brooklyn Dodgers, attending many games with a close friend and experiencing their many heartbreaks as well as the joy of their first world championship in 1955. After the Dodgers decamped to Los Angeles, he became an avid Mets fan from their birth, taking his children to many games and attending the 7th game of the 1986 World Series when they won their second championship.
After returning from Italy, John met the love of his life, Janet Schreiber, at the wedding of a mutual acquaintance. They quickly engaged and were married on August 22, 1959. In short order, they had four children and moved from Brooklyn to Pearl River, New York, where they would raise their family.
John and Janet took great care, attention and love in raising their children, fostering a commitment to doing well in school and their chosen profession, an ethic of doing good for the community, and a sense of discovery of our country and world. The family first took day trips to places like the Catskill Game Farm, next explored the Adirondacks for a week and then took memorable camping vacations to places in the northeast and Virginia. John and Janet fostered in their children a love of travel and exploration, encouraged interest and respect for other cultures, and nurtured an understanding and affinity for their heritage. In retirement, John and Janet traveled the country with each other and at times with others.
A family statement reads, “John was a devoted and loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He always put his family first, teaching us through his example how to help our small corner of this world through our commitment, care and compassion. We will miss him always.”
John was predeceased in March 2025 by Janet, his wife of 65 years. He is survived by three sons: John, Jr. and his wife Penelope of Newton, NJ; Anthony Saeli, III of Warwick, NY; and Jim Saeli and his wife Jeanne of Warwick, NY; four grandchildren: Kristina Saeli, Ashley Koonce, Meghan Puglisi, and Nicholas Saeli; and two great-grandchildren, Marcus Puglisi and Claire Koonce. He was predeceased by his daughter, Cynthia, who was the wife of Prabhakar Kudva.
The family will receive family and friends for visitation on June 20 from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. at the Lazear-Smith & Vander Plaat Memorial Home, 17 Oakland Avenue, Warwick with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 a.m. at St. Stephen RC Church, 75 Sanfordville Road, Warwick, followed by interment on June 23 in Ascension Cemetery in Airmont, NY. The following is a livestream link for the Mass to be viewed at the scheduled time: https://ststephenchurchwarwick.org/livestreams
In lieu of flowers, please to donate to the Cynthia Kudva Memorial Scholarship at the State University of New York at Binghamton online at https://www.binghamton.edu/foundation/giving/index.html or by phone at 607-777-6929. If giving online, 1) click on choose a fund, 2) scroll down to the last option, and click on “other…”, and 3) specify your donation is to the Cynthia Kudva Memorial Scholarship in the Special Instructions/Comments box.