It is with great sadness that our family announces the passing of our dad, John Matonovich. During his working lifetime, he was a conductor on many train trips, and he stopped at many stations along the route and engaged with others. He did that in his working life and, like all of us, in his personal life, too. Our Dad took his last train trip recently at age 91 on September 22, 2024, when he left this world, but he left behind many fond memories with friends and family. He loved train rides, and certainly, he loved life’s journey and the people with whom he shared it.
Our Dad was predeceased by our mother, Caroline, and his daughter, Debbie; father, Nikola, and his mother, Eva; his sisters, Maria (Ivan) Stakich, Anne (Sanko) Pavlovic, and Mara (Victor) Cindric, as well as his sister-in-law, Margaret Matonovich. He is survived by his children: daughter, Lani (Doug) Malanchuk, his sons, Nick (Kathy), Johnny (Sukh) and his grandchildren: Julia (John), Nicholas, Jayse and Raiya. Brother, Mike, and sister, Mary (Phil Huber), as well as many nieces and nephews.
John’s Canadian journey began with his father, Nikola, who was a subsistence farmer in his native Lika Yugoslavia, present day Croatia. Nikola came to Canada on his own in 1927 leaving behind his wife and three daughters. In 1932 after making enough money, Nikola brought his wife, Eva, and John’s three older sisters, Marija, Anne, and Mara to Canada. While in Alberta where John was born the Matonovich family added a younger brother, Mike, and a sister, Mary.
John was born August 28th, 1933, in Mercoal, Alberta. Mercoal is located in the Coal Branch where John’s father worked in an underground coal mine that supplied coal for the railways. When diesel replaced coal to power trains, most of the mines closed down and Coal Branch settlements became ghost towns.
In 1947, the Matonovich family moved from Alberta to Kamloops where John’s sister, Anne, and her husband, Stanley, lived at Nicola Mine in the Cherry Creek area. BC Fruitland company was selling off their land in Brocklehurst, and John’s father purchased 10 acres where present-day Nicolani Street is located. It was from that time that John became a lifelong Kamloops resident.
John loved Kamloops, and he was proud of being a Canadian, while at the same time he respected his heritage and never shied away from letting his friends know. We can see this heritage in many street names in Brocklehurst like Popp, Singh and Ollek Streets, Kelly Drive, Stanko Way and Nicolani which John named in honour of his father, Nikola, and daughter, Lani. Many early immigrant families worked in the fields, graded and packed apples, and canned the produce from the land purchased from BC Fruitland’s Ltd.
After graduating from Kamloops Senior Secondary, John applied for a job on the CNR where he worked for thirty-nine years as a conductor. Although John was constantly on call with the railway and working odd shifts, he also maintained the family orchard after his father died.
Remembering his father covered in coal dust influenced John to develop and share a steadfast commitment to strengthening unions to promote workers' rights. He was the United Transport Union treasurer for twenty-six years, and later to make sure that the union financial records were accurate, he became its national auditor. This role took him to many parts of Canada and the USA to audit union records.
John liked to be the centre of attention, always telling jokes that were like Seinfeld reruns. The best laughs that John got was when he imitated Diefenbaker. This imitation was the sincerest form of flattery or maybe just John poking fun at some of Diefenbaker’s excesses. Knowing John, probably both.
John was a lifelong member of the Kinsmen and served at one time as president. He received congratulations for his life work as a Kinsman from the Prime Minister of Canada, Premier of BC, and the Kamloops Mayor. John was an active member of other service clubs in Kamloops, particularly the Moose and Anavets.
As president of Kinsmen, John once hosted Diefenbaker, who was also a Kinsman, at the head table during an activity. Kinsmen is an association which has a proud history dedicated to fostering life-long friendships while “Serving the community's greatest need by volunteering.” They sponsor boys’ and girls’ activities, build playgrounds, and help people in need.
John loved old time music so when his nephew’s band, the Thompson Valley Boys, played in dance halls around Kamloops, John was there with his friends doing the polka, old time waltzes, and the schottische. John had a Dean Martin voice, Fred Astaire dance steps, and Rocket Richard hockey skills. He was a very good dancer, a bit of a showboat, and always telling jokes.
John was also very artistic. He made model three-dimensional train engines out of flashlight parts, buttons, washers and other scrap material. These unique engines drew many people who wanted a closer look. Many asked if they could purchase his creations. Annually John decorated his house for Christmas and on two occasions his Christmas decoration was chosen as the best in Kamloops.
John had four names. The family called him John, his friends called him Big John, while on the railway his co-workers called him “the King,” and after scoring three goals in one hockey game for the Kam High Red Devils, his coach and team-mates nicknamed him, “The Rocket”. Hockey was his passion and remained so as he supported the Blazers at every home game.
Railroads were John’s life. As a conductor, he was on many train rides and at many stops. Conductors work long days (anywhere from 11 to 13 hours, typically), they have to maneuver heavy machinery, sometimes in terrible weather conditions, and they can't really plan time off for birthdays, holidays, children’s activities, and anniversaries, so family life is sacrificed.
During his morning coffee sessions at McDonalds with some of his long-time friends discussing world events, John held his own. John wanted understanding and evidence…not opinions. Opinions, he said, everyone has them, but very few can back them up with evidence. He saw the world as a united family of people, and he lived that vision.
