Pasquale "Jim" Lendino

Pasquale “Jim” Lendino passed away on Tuesday, November 30, 2021 at Ohio’s Hospice of Miami County, Troy.

Jim was the grandson of Italian immigrants from southern Italy who settled in New York City.  He was born to Teresa Bruno Lendino and Pasquale Lendino on May 28, 1939 in Brooklyn, New York and he spent his younger years growing up in Merrick, NY.

After graduating from Mepham High School, he joined the Army and found himself in Korea watching over our missiles.  Yikes!  Viet Nam was just getting underway when he was discharged from the Army.  From the Army, he went to college at Westchester State in Pennsylvania where he wrestled and studied health and physical education. 

A move to Washington DC saw him teaching and coaching in various schools around the area.  He was teaching in Anacostia, Virginia when Martin Luther King was assassinated and was able to help get teachers and students to safety during the ensuing riots.  It was during his time in DC that he met and married his wife Jan.  It was also during this time that he made use of the GI Bill and earned his master’s from George Washington University.

An opportunity to train VISTA volunteers arose and he took up the challenge, working for Westinghouse Learning Corporation.  He and Jan moved with this job first to Atlanta, Georgia and then to Philadelphia, PA where they welcomed their first child, Jeff on Thanksgiving Day, 1970. 

Westinghouse Learning ceased the VISTA volunteer training program and the young couple decided to move west to Denver where they had friends and the promise of a job.  Before arriving in Denver, Jim took an unpaid position as an advance man for the campaign of Hubert Humphrey.

Upon arrival in Denver, the promised job failed to materialize and Jim took various part-time work while there.  They rented a home on a 200-acre ranch outside of Denver where part of their rent was to feed the 4 cows the owners kept for tax purposes on the property. 

In 1973, Jim applied for and got a job with the Wyoming Department of Education in Cheyenne, Wyoming.  He described himself as a “minor functionary” with the Department where he worked for 26 years.  In 1974, sharing his birthday with Abraham Lincoln, younger son Tony narrowly missed being born on Valentine’s Day (and thus escaped being named ‘Valentino Lendino.)

Both boys took up playing soccer and continued playing into college.  During their soccer years, the boys played in a competitive league which took them to many tournaments far and wide.  Jim coached soccer with a friend, and thoroughly enjoyed the kids and the game.  He continued to follow the game throughout his life and loved watching Premier League play.

In 1999, after they had become empty nesters, Jim and Jan moved to Troy, Ohio to take care of Jan’s mom until her passing in late 2005.  While there, Jim volunteered for Overfield School, where he was the only male on staff reading to the little ones and helping out with other activities as needed.  He also drove a bus for SafeHaven, a nonprofit dedicated to making life better for folks with mental illness.

Both Jim and Jan retired and remained in Troy until his passing.

He leaves behind his wife, Jan, sons and daughters-in-law Jeff and Ann in Chaska, MN and Tony and Kelley in Allen TX, and 5 beloved grandchildren, Hannah, Gianni, Jimmy, Sofia, and Anthony and newest pooch Clifford.

A celebration of life will be held at 2:00 PM on Sunday, December 5, 2021 at Fisher-Cheney Funeral Home, Troy. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to No Kid Hungry: Share Our Strength, PO Box 715475, Philadelphia, PA 19171-5475. Arrangements entrusted to Fisher-Cheney Funeral Home, Troy.  

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