fortified with the Sacraments of Holy Mother Church, died June 7, 2017, after a brief lung illness.
God. Family. Country.
Loving husband of the late Judy Svetanics; beloved father of Maureen (Mark) Jacquot, Katie (John) Fischer, Amy (Mike) Ruggeri and Lisa (Mark) Mitchell; cherished grandfather of Lt. Dominic, USMC and Josephine Ruggeri, Caroline and Neil Fischer, Jack and Genevieve Jacquot and Molly and Lilly Mitchell. He was born in St. Louis to the late Milton and Clara Svetanics. Dear brother of Don (Jean) and the late Joan Svetanics, Mary Ann (Van) Reidhead, Jeane (Tom) Barr, the late Milton (late JoAnn) Svetanics and the late Rita Svetanics. He had an unwavering dedication to his ‘families’ – his children and grandchildren – and the men and women of the Fire Department.
Neil served as a Lance Corporal in the United States Marine Corp. He had more than 52 years of public safety service, including serving as Fire Chief for both the St. Louis City Fire Department and the Lemay Fire Protection District. He has been in more burning buildings and seen more excitement in his life than most other people. He had a career he loved, every minute of it, and surrounded himself with an A-team of highly competent and loyal colleagues and friends.
His greatest achievement was not losing a single firefighter in the line of duty. He was proud of his accomplishments and worked diligently to transform the Fire Department into one of the best in the country. But perhaps his greatest accomplishment and that with which he was most proud was the one-of-a-kind family that he and Judy created.
He was happiest when his family was together and enjoyed his daughters and grandchildren living within 28 houses of each other. Neil spent most of his time making random visits to hang out with his grandchildren. Some of the best moments were the simple ones – spent watching movies, listening to stories, enduring his practical jokes and sharing life lessons.
His travels took him far and wide. From Florida to Florence, California to Cairo and many stops in between. And he’d have story after story to share about his adventures. He often spoke about how his father once said, “Someday, I’m going to go somewhere.” Sadly, that never happened for his father, but he was determined to make sure it came to life for him and his family.
In his final hour, he continued to seek opportunities to serve and did so as a tissue donor.
Gung Ho!
Please help us celebrate the life of this amazing husband, father, grandfather, firefighter, brother, father-in-law, nephew, uncle, cousin and friend to so many.
Services: Memorial visitation at St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church on Sunday, June 11 from 1:00 pm – 9:00 pm. Funeral Mass at St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church on Monday, June 12 at 10:00 am with burial following at Resurrection Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Backstoppers.
KUTIS AFFTON SERVICE