John Seneca

John David Seneca, age 65, of Wayne, passed away unexpectedly at home on Thursday morning, April 14, 2022.

John was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. He attended Xaverian High School in Brooklyn where he excelled in baseball. During his time at Xaverian, he was voted All City Athlete of the Year for two years in a row in all five boroughs of New York City. After graduating high school in 1975, John pursued higher education at Seton Hall University where he pitched for the Seton Hall Pirates and concurrently played baseball in the Cape Cod League in Chatham. In his junior year at Seton Hall, he was drafted by the Major League Kansas City Royals but he turned the offer down, choosing instead to finish his college education. A year later, in his senior year, he was drafted by the New York Yankees.

After three years in the Yankee farm system John left baseball and set his sights on a career in information technology. He began as an I.T. manager for Pepsi, then American Cyanamid, and most recently with Spectra Laboratories before retiring in 2019. It's also interesting to note that John's grandfather Marty Seneca and his father John were the founders of the former Marty's Shoes that was so prevalent in New Jersey.

John married Maureen Perrone in 1982 and was blessed with her two daughters Anna and Diane from a previous marriage. Adding to that blessing, together they welcomed their third daughter Jaclyn.

For the past twenty years, John was the beloved husband of Colleen Shaw. They met while both working at American Cyanamid. One day John asked Colleen if she’d like to “do a movie together some time.” Colleen gladly agreed and off to the movies they went to see Meet the Parents. They soon fell in love and with Colleen as his wife, he again was blessed with three more children, Shannon, Tim and Joshua from Colleen’s previous marriage.

John was the most likeable, unpretentious, happy-go-lucky guy in the world. Everybody loved “J.D.” He was the kind of guy you couldn’t dress up but you loved to take him out anyway. John didn’t concern himself much with fashion. In fact he was known for putting his own signature on anything he wore by typically cutting off the sleeves or making some other alteration here or there. To John, comfort was key! If he joined you for dinner, it wasn’t unusual for him to show up in a button collar shirt and sweat pants. John’s culinary tastes were similar. A good day consisted of consuming two liters of Pepsi which helped to wash down his chicken nuggets or juicy cheeseburgers. He loved telling jokes and pulling pranks like pulling up to the Dunkin Donuts drive up window and asking for a hot dog all the way and fries with gravy just to see the reaction on the order takers face. Jo-Jo, his Yorkshire terrier and best little buddy often accompanied him on runs out for food. In fact, whenever he pulled up to the pick-up window at Wendy’s all the workers were so happy to see Jo-Jo and they usually treated him to some chicken nuggets of his own.

For many years, John enthusiastically volunteered thousands of hours at the Wayne P.A.L. where he was affectionately known as “Coach J.D..  Because of John’s professional experience he was larger than life to the kids and truly qualified to help the young players develop into potential future stars. John also had the privilege of coaching his own sons, Tim and Josh and, with his dad’s training, Josh made it all the way to the farm system of the St. Louis Cardinals, an accomplishment they were both very proud of.

Above all else, nothing was more important to John than being with and demonstrating love and devotion to Colleen, his kids, grandchildren and entire family. He especially got excited about being together for the holidays and recently, dressed up as Santa Claus to surprise his grandchildren. They never had a clue that it was their dear “Pop Pop” under that costume. Being the sun worshipper that he was, he had a pool installed in the back yard which became a favorite gathering spot for summer get-togethers with family and friends. John himself couldn’t get enough time out in the sun and so it was the sure place to find him if he was nowhere else to be found. John always put others before himself and he’d gladly go with less so that his family could have more. He was the greatest of providers and a true protector.

John was a fighter. He survived two heart attacks and presently was in the middle of a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Having recently completed cancer treatments, he was anticipating surgery soon and was feeling optimistic. His sudden, unexpected passing, no doubt, comes as a tremendously severe shock to his entire family. He was deeply loved and respected and, while his family is grateful for the time they had, your prayers are sincerely appreciated.  

John is survived by his beloved wife Colleen Shaw, six loving children: Jaclyn Dutkowski and husband John, Anna Stanin and husband Christopher, Diane Healy and husband Daniel, Shannon Farfaglia and husband Vince, Tim Shaw and fiancé Kristina, and Joshua Shaw; six adored grandchildren: Gabriella Stanin, Ava Healy, Victoria Stanin, Benjamin Healy, Mason Dutkowski, and Madeline Dutkowski; his dear brother Martin Seneca and wife Tina and their loving daughters, Alyssa and Serena and grandchildren; and numerous dear nieces and nephew, Laura, Christine and Robert.  He was predeceased by his dear sister Gail Seneca who is survived by her husband, Hal Nathan

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to be made to the Jack McGovern Coats Disease Foundation (JMCDF) in honor of his beloved grandson, Mason Dutkowski.

Jack McGovern Coats Disease Foundation (JMCDF)
20 Park Road
Suite E
Burlingame, CA 94010