John Baptista Bennetti Jr.

June 19, 2020 John Bennetti of Grass Valley passed away at the age of 89 having lived a full and rich life. He was respected, kind and caring. The most loyal and honest man I've ever known. During his life he was always physically active, flying his Cessna 182, riding his silver wing motorcycle, scuba diving and using his mechanical skills to maintain a home, all the cars, and anything else with moving parts. He held a college degree in electronic engineering and his career began in the USAF at about age 20 where he was a lieutenant and flew F84 and F86 jets while he was stationed in Japan during the Korean conflict. Following that time, he continued his service for the government in the US Geological Survey. During his time in the USGS John was head of the USGS survey team who designed and built early warning systems for the mining industry to protect miners from quakes and cave-ins. While at Lockheed Martin he designed a component used by the space program launch site in Cape Canaveral, FL that releases the space craft from the launch pad. This component is patented by the US Government and still in use today. John spent most of his middle years living in Lakewood, CO enjoying time and travel with his wife, Anna, and their two daughters until Anna died in early 1998. Afterward he came out to Sacramento, CA and stayed with his oldest daughter for some time. It was here he found and married his 2nd wife and beautiful companion, Hilda (El). John and El were happily married for over 21 years, enjoying a wonderful life together at Alta Sierra in Grass Valley. They shared a deep commitment and love of family and between them had 12 children, with multiple grandchildren and great grandchildren. John leaves behind his loving wife, El, and their very special family who will all miss him deeply. We pray that God keeps him and may he rest in peace.