John Edward Shields of Burlington passed away Saturday, January 7, 2023, at the age of 78.
John was born in Altoona, PA to Louis and Mary Shields. He was raised in Fairless Hills, PA, and a graduate of Pennsbury High School. After high school he proudly served his country in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War.
John was an avid tree-lover and worked as professional tree surgeon for many years. He owned his own tree service, Shields Tree Services in Jarrettsville, MD, where his favorite business slogan was “No job too small, no tree too tall.” He went on to work at Joint Base MDL where he started the inmate labor program and retired after 20 years of service
He was an outdoorsman enthusiast and enjoyed swimming and skydiving. John also supported his community in many ways including over 40 years in the American Legion, a blood donor to the American Red Cross, and the Shade Tree Commission in Florence, NJ, which was designated as a “Tree City USA”
In addition to his parents, John was preceded in death by his oldest brother Lou (Barbara). John is survived by his wife, Mary and his children Chris, John (Dana), and Megan (Jordan), his brothers Tom, Jim, his sister Mary Lou and many nieces and nephews.
A mass will be held at St. Paul’s RC Church, 223 E. Union Street in Burlington, NJ at 11am on Tuesday, January 17th with burial at BG Wm Doyle memorial cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please send any contributions to Tunnel to Towers Organization.
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