Father of Harvard resident, taught at Boston College
John Junkala (Courtesy photo)
John Junkala, 82, of Framingham died at home on Nov. 8, 2012, after a short illness.
John was the son of Waino J. and Gertrude E. (Leppala-Stacevich) Junkala. He leaves his wife of 54 years Marlene (Mahan) Junkala; two daughters, Julia Junkala of Harvard and Jill Junkala of Leominster; one son, Jonathan Junkala of Lakewood, Colo.; and a granddaughter, Elena Junkala of Harvard, whom he greatly adored. He also leaves two sisters, Anita LeClair of Moreno Valley, Calif., and Mary Anne Mathieu of Leominster; and two brothers, George Junkala of Lyndeborough, N.H., and Walter Stacevich of Manchester, N.H.
Born in Roxbury, John was raised in Fitchburg and graduated from Fitchburg High School in 1948. During the Korean War he was a sergeant in the First Cavalry Division, and he was awarded three Bronze Stars. He graduated from Fitchburg State Teachers College in 1956 and was a special education teacher in Springfield, Mass., for six years, during which time he received his master’s degree from Boston University in 1958.
John received his doctoral degree from Syracuse University in 1965. After two years as an assistant professor at Syracuse University, he taught at Boston College for 30 years, retiring from the Lynch School of Education in 1996 as an associate professor of special education. During his tenure at Boston College, he spent two years working for the University of Michigan in Germany as resident coordinator of a special education curriculum project for the Department of Defense overseas schools for dependent children. He visited and consulted with Department of Defense schools in Germany, England, Spain, Morocco, Japan, and the Philippines. Back in the U.S. he consulted with special education programs over much of the country. He coauthored two books in his field and published numerous articles in education, psychology, and computer instruction journals.
John was a member of the Appalachian Mountain Club and spent parts of many summers working as a volunteer on trail maintenance crews in the White Mountains, the Berkshires, and the Adirondacks. His final years were enlivened by time spent with his granddaughter, Elena, fishing, building things, doing yard work, etc., and watching her play at various baseball diamonds, hockey rinks, and soccer fields in and around Harvard.
A graveside service will be held at St. John’s cemetery in Lancaster, Mass., on Saturday, Nov. 24, at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The American Heart Association, 20 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701. Remembrances can be entered at www.casperfuneralservices.com.
