John R. Archer

In the late hours of Tuesday, June 9, 2020, John R. Archer of Ridgewood, N.J. was called to eternal life at the age of 74.
John was born in Minneapolis and raised in St. Paul, MN. He graduated from Cretin High School and attended the University of Minnesota. He was one of seven children. He served in the Marine Corp Reserve from 1964 until 1970. He lived in several states before eventually settling in Ridgewood, NJ where he lived for over 40 years. John was a gifted salesman and financial planner, and spent most of his career as a wealth manager, rising to first Vice President for Smith Barney, now Morgan Stanley, Inc.
43 years sober, John was a member of AA and, in that time sponsored dozens of people on their path to sobriety. He was often quoted as saying “If you are lucky enough to get sober you have to give it away in order to keep it.” In his youth he loved ice hockey and water skiing. He was active in his church, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and an engaged member of his community. John loved golf, gardening, walking around his neighborhood while listening to audiobooks and visiting his neighbors. Many people referred to him as “the Mayor.” His hobbies included driving and maintaining his Tesla, and buying and selling on eBay. He maintained his house and gardens with great enthusiasm. He was a quick and sometimes salty wit, and had a gift for bringing levity to any situation. He knew how to have fun and insisted that everyone around him join in. He was happiest when surrounded by family and dogs, not necessarily in that order.
He is predeceased by his parents, James and Irene, his brothers, James and Steve and his sister Jean. He is survived by his beloved wife of over 40 years, Joanne, his children, Donald (Soledad), Andrea (Henry) and Shannon (Allen), his six grandchildren Ian, Mila, Ashleigh, John William, John Oliver and Helen, sisters Anne, Mary and Missy, Sister-in-Law, Suzanne (Kevin), and the most fun “Unc” to dozens of nieces and nephews.
Our lives were blessed to have this wonderful man in our life and, although he is gone, he will remain in our hearts for all time.
In lieu of flowers, we are creating a memorial fund to benefit the Women’s Cornerstone Ministry at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. In the meantime, you can donate https://olmcridgewood.churchgiving.com/ws/opportunities/Regular/donate and include in the comments, “Donation to Women’s Cornerstone Ministry in Honor of John Archer.”
A private funeral service and Mass will be held on June 15th, 2020. Everyone is invited to participate in the Mass of Resurrection via a live stream starting at 1:00pm at the links below:

Parish Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=544971926199566

Parish Youtube page:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh4-SG2f0Zc

The Parish Website
http://www.olmcridgewood.com/