- Date Of Birth: June 28, 1947
- Date Of Death: June 12, 2020
- State: Michigan
John Griffioen, Jr., 72, passed away Friday afternoon in Kalamazoo. He was born June 28, 1947 to John, Sr. and Jean (VanderLay) Griffioen in Kalamazoo. John was united in marriage to the former Kathy Shoup on November 6, 1976.
John met the love of his life in the fall of 1975. John famously proposed to Kathy on Beaver Island in 1976, but had to wait for her answer till they got back home. They got married in the fall of the same year, and their love grew stronger every day they were together.
John loved the time he spent with his family. They spent many summers traveling and camping throughout the United States, and always made the trip Up North to camp with family and friends on Lake Superior. He was an avid “rock hound” and the van was often inches closer to the ground on returning from vacation.
John was also a keen photographer. He collected film cameras and took hundreds of pictures. He favored nature photography, and would say his best shot was a family portrait taken standing in the middle of the Virgin River in Zion National Park.
John cooked most meals for his family when everyone was at home and many memories were made with the family of six sitting around the dining room table. He loved to joke around with his boys, and many meals were filled with laughter and often spilled drinks.
Later in life, John adopted Tucker, Oscar and Rocky, his three Shih Tzu pups. He loved the dogs and they became his new travelling companions when they would travel to Gulf Shores, Alabama during the winter months.
John is survived by his wife, Kathy Griffioen; children, Rob (Bridget) Griffioen, Mark (Emily) Griffioen, Peter (Lauren) Griffioen and Michael (Dusty Jepkema) Griffioen; 6 grandchildren; his mother, Jean Griffioen; sister-in-law, Beverly Griffioen; and nieces and nephews. John was preceded in death by his father, John, Sr.; and brother, David Griffioen.
