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 John Harley Wampler Sr.
January 08, 2005
John Harley Wampler Sr., 75, of 99 Second St., Central Annex, died Saturday at home from lung cancer.
Born in New Bedford on July 20, 1929, son of Clarence O. and Catherine Hennesey Wampler, he was a 1947 graduate of New Bedford High School, where he was a member of the selected choir, ROTC, and was president of the first weekly Junior Achievement radio show.
He also had lived in Otis and in Farmington, Conn.
He graduated from the Massachusetts Military Academy in 1950 as a second lieutenant and was assigned to Fort Sill, Okla.
After the service, he joined the West Hartford (Conn.) Police Department and was a member of the pistol team, winning many trophies for individual and team competitions. He retired in 1973 as a detective lieutenant and opened Search 4, a private detective and security agency.
In 1978, he formed Wampler Marketing, a wholesale products company, which he sold to purchase Earth Campgrounds in Otis. He expanded that to include Earth 2 Campgrounds. After the state took the property by eminent domain, he and his wife and granddaughter in 2002 started Wampler Enterprises, a discount e-commerce business, as independent business owners through Quixtar.
At the time of his death, Mr. Wampler was employed by Berkshire Housing Services Inc. as resident manager of Central Annex.
During the 1970s, he and his wife, the former Barbara Bedford, were editors of the Alki-Line, the Connecticut Alcoholics Anonymous monthly newsletter.
He was co-chairman of the 1978 New England Regional AA convention held in Hartford, and co-chairman of the 1977 State Summer AA conference held in Banner Lodge, Moodus, Conn. He received his 34-year medallion in recognition of his sobriety on Oct. 21, 2004.
He was also vice president of Earth Enterprises Inc., a construction and remodeling company, as well as president of Mastery Books Publishing Co. He was a justice of the peace and a past president of the Kiwanis Club of Otis and Sandisfield.
He and his wife celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary Oct. 21.
Besides his wife, he leaves three sons, William Wampler and Robert Wampler, both of Otis, and James Wampler of Plainville, Conn.; a sister, Patricia Wampler of Fairhaven; eight grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Another son, John H. Wampler Jr., died July 10, 2001.
FUNERAL NOTICE -- The memorial gathering of family and friends of John Harley Wampler Sr., who died Jan. 8, 2005, will be tomorrow, Jan. 11, at Central Annex, 99 Second St., from 7 to 9 p.m. In lieu of flowers, his request is that donations be sent to SIOGA Club, P.O. Box 4392, Pittsfield, MA 01202, to help the club's rebuilding efforts since the tragic fire on Fenn Street in February 2004 destroyed its meeting place.
He leaves daughters-in-law, Katherine, widow of John Jr.; Margaret, wife of James, and Toni-Ann, wife of Robert; granddaughters, Meghan Wampler Mailett (husband Marc, great-granddaughter Victoria); Rebekah Wampler; Jamie Rose Wampler (James' family); Tina Marie Wampler (Robert's family); grandsons, William Jr. (wife Harmonie, great-granddaughter Kaylee, great-grandson Alex) (William Sr.'s family); Jason and Matthew Wampler (John Jr.s' family), and Benjamin (Robert's family).
As justice of the peace, he had the privilege of celebrating the marriage of his grandson William Wampler Jr. and his wife, Harmonie.
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