John J. Hammerer

John J. Hammerer of Wilmington, DE passed away peacefully on Friday, May 12, 2017. He was 88 years old.

John was a native Wilmingtonian, the son of the late Vincent and Catherine Hammerer and the husband of the late Barbara B. Hammerer. His siblings Vincent Jr., Charles and Catherine predeceased him.

A graduate of Salesianum School, Class of 1947, he attended Goldey-Beacom College before beginning service in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.     

John enjoyed long and successful careers in business and public service. Prior to and after his service in the Army he worked for the DuPont Company. He was an award winning industrial supplies salesman at both the Hudson Supply and the Speakman Companies. He subsequently served on the administrative staff of the Delaware General Assembly for 17 years.  

He was widely recognized for his selfless service to the Wilmington community. As a young man, he was a member of the Wilmington Jaycees and received their Young Man of the Year Award. He was also an active member of the Wilmington West Rotary.  He was a long-standing member of the DFRC Blue-Gold All-Star Football Game and Holidazzle Committees. He is well known to generations of Salesianum Alumni as a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors and for his work on events such as the Annual Sports Banquet and Communion Breakfast. In recognition for his faithful service to Salesianum, he was inducted into the school’s Alumni Hall of Fame in 2012.

A loving and devoted family man, John was a proud grandfather who was an enthusiastic supporter of his grandchildren and was a fixture at their many athletic events.

John is survived by his children, John, Jr. of Springfield, VA and his wife, Nancy and their children Megan, Katie and her husband Alex, and Ross and his wife Caryn; his daughter Joanne Seitz of Wilmington, DE and her husband, Paul, and their children, Stephanie and Courtney; and his son Jeffrey of Ann Arbor, Michigan.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 AM on Friday, May 19, 2017 at St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Church, 901 N. DuPont Street, Wilmington, DE 19805. Family and friends are invited to pay their respects at 9:30 AM prior to 10:30 Mass. Burial will be private.

In lieu of flowers, the Family requests memorial contributions be made to the John J. Hammerer Scholarship Fund at Salesianum School, 1801 N. Broom Street, Wilmington, DE 19802 (www.salesianum.org).

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