John F. Capers
John F. Capers of Butler succumbed courageously to a painful battle with cancer Saturday.
Born Aug. 21, 1939, in Butler, he was the son of the late Amil W. Capers and Agnes Patten Capers.
He leaves behind to cherish his memory, his beloved wife of 31 years, Ruth Zima Capers, whom he married Aug. 30, 1986; two children, Cynthia (Darrell) Stewart of Butler and Joseph (Jennifer) Capers of Holly Hill, Fla.; his daughter-in-law, Christine Capers of Holly Hill, Fla.; six grandchildren, Jeremy (Amie) Stewart of Suffern, N.Y., Jonna (Mark) Rumbarger of Pasadena, Md., John F. Capers III of South Daytona Beach, Fla., Christopher (Krista) Capers of Daytona Beach, Fla., Joseph Capers Jr. of Holly Hill, Fla., and Amanda Capers of Oceanside, Calif.; three great-grandchildren, Isla, Mackenzi and Escher; his half-brother, Joseph (Barbara) Ferreri of College Station, Texas; his half-sister, Ginger (Don) Crocker of Spring Hope, N.C.; and numerous nieces and nephews.
In addition to his parents, John was preceded in death by his son, John F. Capers Jr.; and two brothers, Harry and Amil Capers Jr.
John loved life, was always smiling, happy and positive to a fault. He was a loving and supportive husband and father who was deeply loved by his family. John was an avid golfer and so looked forward to the “shoot-outs” and the camaraderie of his golf buddies at Butler Country Club. He and his golf cronies made their golf trip to Myrtle Beach every spring for 38 consecutive years.
He was a member of St. Paul Roman Catholic Church for 31 years.
John graduated from the Business Training College of Pittsburgh, majoring in real estate. He officially entered real estate in 1958 and obtained his broker's license in 1961. John became a certified residential appraiser and has operated Capers Real Estate as president and owner since 1962.
John chaired every committee at the Butler County Association of Realtors, which he joined in 1958. He was a past president of the association in 1966, 1967, 1982 and 1997 for a total of eight years. He was a past Butler board president 10 times, was named Realtor of the Year in the mid-1980s and again in 2007. He was also a past chairman of the Multi-List service committee for 14 years, in addition to heading numerous local real estate committees.
He was involved in numerous committees of the Pennsylvania State Real Estate Association, including the legislative committee, the credentials committee, the convention committee and the appraisal committee. He was a past state director, was District 7 regional vice president in 1985 and 1986, a Realtors Political Action Committee trustee for six years, a prior candidate for District 7 regional vice president, earned the Distinguished Service Award in 2003 and obtained Realtor emeritus status in 2007 (local, state and national), in addition to being past chairman of the state convention and numerous state level committees, past chairman and past R-PAC trustee and is recognized for attending district, state and tri-state conventions for 59 consecutive years.
John was active in the community through United Way, as a member of the Butler County Tax Assessment Appeal Board, the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, the Elks, the Moose, the American Legion, the Butler Zoning Board and the Butler City Redevelopment Committee and serving on the Butler Country Club board of directors for two terms.
In his free time, John loved to golf, once getting a hole-in-one at Butler Country Club. He also enjoyed his Lionel electric trains, being a private pilot and member of the North Pittsburgh Flying Club, being an avid fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers and belonging to the North Pittsburgh Corvette Club.
He was a wonderful friend, an honorable man and a true gentleman. He will be sorely missed by all.
“And now take back the soul of John Francis Capers whom You have shared with us. He brought us joy and we loved him well. He was not ours, he was not mine.”
CAPERS — The family of John F. Capers, who died Saturday, Sept. 9, 2017, will welcome friends from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at Boylan Funeral Home & Cremation Center, 856 Evans City Road, Renfrew.A Mass of Christian burial will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church, 128 N. McKean St., Butler, with Father Rev. Harry B. Bielewicz as celebrant.John will be laid to rest privately by his family at Calvary Cemetery in Butler.In lieu of flowers, John's family suggests that memorial contributions be made in his honor to St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church, 128 N. McKean St., Butler, PA 16001 or Butler County Humane Society, 1015 Evans City Road, Renfrew, PA 16053.Expressions of sympathy may be shared with John's family at www.boylanfuneralservices.com.
