They came to praise John Jepson
Linda Jepson and John Jepson were married for 42 years. Photos: Tina Chong.
By Bob Elliott
Canadian Baseball Network
They came from near.
They came from far.
Current players and their parents were there.
Ex-players and parents of ex-players were there.
Man and woman, one and all came to praise John Jepson a gentle man.
The George Darte Funeral Chapel was full after Jepson passed Oct. 14. A native of Park Extension area in Montreal, he moved to Toronto in 1970 and was a sandlot fixture with the North York Blues, Team Ontario, the Ontario Youth Team, the Toronto Mets and the Ontario Terriers.
One of the old sayings is that behind every good baseball man stands a great woman. For the past 18 months as John Jepson has battled pancreatic cancer, his loving wife, Linda Jepson stood beside him. Linda was with John through his final days at Hospice Niagara in St. Catharines.
Jepson was 67. He drew teenagers to see him off, as well as their fathers and people older than Jepson himself. There are a lot of good baseball people in the province. I’m not sure who now holds the title of most respected amateur baseball man in Ontario with Jepson gone.
We know we might miss some but here are the names of some who were there:
Current Terriers: Jack Iannuzzi, Connor O’Halloran, Stephen Phillips, Campbell Ellis, Liam Carey, Jakob Cellupica and Jacob Mahoney.
Terriers alumni: Joe Tevlin, Nolan Gallo and Billy Martin.
Terriers alumin parents: Carl and Amy Anderson (Jack Anderson), Shawn and Janet Omstead (Jack Omstead) and Brett and Sandy Abram (Ben Abram).
Terriers’ staff and coaches: Nicole and Mike Tevlin; 18U: Dean Dicenzo, manager, coaches Tim Gasparotto and John Milton; 17U: Greg O’Halloran, manager, coaches Ian Bala and Joe Iannuzzi; 16U Ryan Pollard, manager, coach John McEwan; 15U coach Jeff Sharp; founder Danny Thompson; senior advisor: Scott Vandevalk: Terriers administration/The Baseball Zone: Kevin Horton.
Terriers alumni coaches: Rick Gallo and Tom Colangelo.
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The Toronto Mets, founded by Jason Chee-Aloy, Howie Birnie and Jepson were well represented:
Curret Met: Rob Vavaroutsos.
Mets alumni: Connor Panas, Greg Densem, Brett Sanders, Mark Bernardi, Kris Mucilli, Owen Laing, Jacob Mahoney, Adam Chong.
Mets alumni parents of: Tracy and Robert Leach (Landon Leach’s parents), Pat and Dave Yerzy (Andrew Yerzy), Gerry Tissenbaum (Maxx Tissenbaum) and Heather and Chris Dobie (Tyler Dobie).
Mets coaches: Ryan McBride, Rich Leitch, Bob Roberts, Marty Roberts, Jack Brown, Jim Eliopoulos, Honsing Leung, Jason Chee-Aloy, Greg Densem, Rich Panas, Tim Carrigan, Chris Sereda, Peter Angelow, Pete Seto, Brian Sewell and Geoff Whent.
North York 1996 National champs: Jamie Roberts, Scott Lundy and Min Soo (Lem) Kim.
From the 2017 North York peewee National Champ: Sean Chiu (Jepson was his GM so Chiu was probably the youngest player Jepson was involved with who was in attendance).
North York Blues alumni: Marcus Knecht.
North York executive: Bill Down and Steve Davis.
And London Badgers boss Mike Lumley and his wife were on hand as well.
John Jepson had a sea of friends come to see him off
Words from former Toronto Mets coach Bob Roberts:
Well, this is still all a blur to me - so difficult to understand, but as Bill Joel sang, only the good die young and this was way too young, but you were all good my friend!
John and I have been very close friends since 1987 when I first met him at Bond Park, while my oldest son Marty, was playing ball for the North York Blues - John was the junior coach and was running the team by himself - as my son progressed, John asked me if I would like to help him as a coach. I agreed and in 1989, John and I began a more than 25 year association on the ball field - but it actually turned into more than just a baseball association with John.
We became very close friends and did many social things together - I particularly remember my wife and I, along with John and his wife Linda, going to Rock Roll and Remember on New Years Eve at a downtown hotel, to usher in the New Year. Wonderful memories, with two wonderful friends. Our trips to the Molson Indy, or a Blue Jays game when he worked for Quaker State and I for the Toronto Star and we used company tickets as we both enjoyed a guys night out - our many phone calls when we both had jobs, just kind of made the day feel better.
As for the baseball connection with John and I seemed to click. John and I took North York teams to three National championships and won two gold medals - in 1992 we were the first North York team to advance to the nationals finishing fourth in Jonquiere, Que. We should have won. We had the best team there - but boys will be boys and they might have been a little too tired to compete as they should have. They had some late nights me thinks. However, we got another shot in 1996 and this time, won our first gold medal in Kitchener and were the first North York team to win a National title. We decided to have a celebration night with the North York seniors, who had also played for a National championship, at a local establishment.
As the night went on and the adult beverages began to make people talk more and more - a challenge was issued: who was the better team? The Juniors who won a championship, or the Seniors, who didn’t. John and I heard rumblings about a game and we decided to exit the celebrations early .
About midnight, the party moved to Bond Park and a game was played to determine who was better - lights on and the game was underway in the wee hours of the morning. There are different opinions of who won, but the night forged friendships that are alive and well to this day. Nearly all of those players on both teams, were coached at some point by JJ!
In 2003 we did it again, with the North York bantams winning the gold in Windsor. I was the head coach on this team and I can still see John, who was coaching third base, waving his arms frantically for the runner at second base, as we scored a run in the bottom of the seventh inning for a walk off 2-1 win over Nova Scotia. John and I embraced like we were kids - I can still feel our hugs from that night at Riverside Stadium as we celebrated a gold medal win - man, I’m going to miss my friend JJ!
John and I alternated between field manager and coach - I remember a particularly humorous happening in 1992. We were playing Thornhill at Bishop Cross Park. A young lad, Allan Robinson, was pitching this particular game and was having difficulty throwing strikes this night. John, who had a little Earl Weaver in him, was becoming more and more frustrated with Alan, he said to me “Row Bear I’m going to the mound to straighten him out.” Off he went. He briskly stomped his way to the mound, muttered something to Allan and was back in the dugout in about 10 seconds. I said “John, what the heck could you possibly have said in that short a time?” Without hesitation he blurted “I told him Babe Ruth was dead.” John had a way of making me smile at just the right time.
John and Jason Chee-Aloy were the co-founders of the Toronto Mets baseball organization and John recruited me to be the field manager of the Mets 16U team. It lasted for about eight years I think, until I retired from coaching.
Linda and John
I can honestly say, I have never, ever, seen one person be so dedicated with the organizing the entire administrative duties of the Mets. He always made sure of all the travel arrangements, hotels and food for the coaches, players and yes, even for the parents if they needed help, was always perfect and it WAS always perfect.
One of my coaches, who had coached in a few other PBLO organizations, once told me, that Mets coaches were treated better than any other organization he had been with. This was all John’s doing, as he always made sure the coaches were looked after. All we had to do, was coach and run practices - it made things so much more easier to do.
On one of our trips for spring training we flew to Miami and as sure as the sun rose in the morning we departed the airport and vans were waiting for the coaches to transport the players to the hotel.
John was so very organized!
On the way out of the airport, there just happened to be a toll to be paid. John was driving the van ahead of me and as usual, he paid the toll for his van and for mine, but he was taking a long time to pay like $4 for both vans. I started to wondered what was he conjuring up in his mind to try and get me.
As he eventually left honking his horn - I pulled up to the toll booth - the lady handed me a piece of paper folded up - I looked at her and said “What’s this?” She said “The guy ahead of you paid for you and said you were very rich man, lonely and looking for a woman - so here’s my phone number.” Yes, John had a way of making me smile at the right time.
Our spring trips to Florida always were in March and my birthday was also during that time. Every year, there was always a cake for me and pizza for all, to celebrate my birthday - as he made his speech, he would say: “Everyone join in with me in wishing Bob a happy 78th birthday.” Man I’m going to miss my friend John.
John would work for hours and hours on administration stuff. I once asked him, “John why do you spend so much time on all of this stuff?” He said: “Row Bear, Baseball is my life, I love doing this.” By the way, he never took a penny, for all the work he did - as a matter of fact, when we coached at North York, he never cut a player from the team. In John’s world, if they wanted to play ball they had a place on his team.
I know for a fact, when you’re dealing with kids form 19 to 21 years of age, some of these boys didn’t have the funds to pay their registration. The Association needed to be paid registration fees. It WAS paid in full, every year and I know there were times players didn’t pay - but somehow, their registration was always paid in full. This was John being John and nobody ever knew about his generosity, so kids could play ball. He was one of a kind!
He did love baseball - he coached my oldest son, then my youngest son and finally, my grandson was recruited to the Mets by John.
There was only one thing in his life he loved more than baseball - and that’s his beautiful and wonderful wife of 42 years Linda - you were his world Linda. You were his baby doll, his fluff and the love of his life!
Over the course of this past week, since John’s passing, I’ve received so many messages from former players, some as far back as 26 years ago, expressing their grief of John’s passing and praising what a wonderful man and coach he was - some of those players are present today - what a tribute to a fine man.
One of our former players said - a person can only hope to leave the legacy you did John - so true - Rest in Peace my wonderful friend, you will be missed by so many, none more than I - You will never forgotten!
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Jepson began work with Merit Insurance and over the years was in national sales with Quaker State Oil and later with Castrol.
He never forgot his Montreal roots and was a devoted lifetime fan of his beloved Montreal Canadiens. Nor did any of his friends forget to tease if the Habs laid a stinker.
John and Linda vacationed annually in Fort Lauderdale by the Sea until becoming snowbirds in 2013 when they bought a winter home in Venice, Fla. They moved to the Niagara-on-the-Lake area from Toronto in 2015.
Jepson was a board member and, ultimately, President of the Premier Baseball League of Ontario. In 2018 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the PBLO.
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Jepson’s life long friend Dan Amadori introduced former Mets coach Jason Chee-Aloy who said in part:
It’s nice to see so many of you here today to remember and honor our dear friend John Jepson.
Linda, I am honored to be asked to say a few words. And I understand that was John’s wish. We are so sorry for John’s passing. If there’s anything you need, you can count on many of us.
We have all been thinking a lot about John. I was in Boston last week Sunday when I received the news. Sitting in Fenway Park that evening, everything started to hit me. At a ballpark – a shrine – the place where most of us came to know John. A few days later, I’m in Montreal – where John grew up – and I really started to think about everything John.
We’re here today as “A Celebration of John’s Life”. So, let’s do that. John was the ultimate people person. Walking into many ballparks, gatherings, communities, and meeting with friends always with a smile on his face. He had the ‘gift of gab’ and, boy, did he love to talk. He kinda always knew what to say and when to say it – he had that knack. Making connections, telling stories, giving advice, and ultimately being very helpful. John always put others first with such happiness. He always tried to do the right thing. John’s ability to connect with all of us makes his ‘family’.
John’s family is huge. Now, I don’t mean his immediate family only, I mean everyone who came to know him. John’s family isn’t just from where he grew up and where he’s living – it extends to Vancouver Island across the country past Montreal, and all the way down to Venice, Fla.
I first met John when he coached me in 1991. John and Bob Roberts coached me in 1991 and 1992. And of all of the teams I ever played for, that 1992 team was the closest of families. John had lots to do with that. And I am so glad some of our teammates are here today.
Now back in those days, John – believe it or not – wasn’t always about winning. He used to invite us into his home, take us out for beers after games and practices, and just got to know us more like an easy-going uncle rather than your coach. He also did other things that go beyond coaching – like getting a teammate out of a Belleville jail and then piling in a bunch of girls in his car to drive them home so we would minimize trouble … but those are stories for another time. But, summer of 1992 was special. This team had a really good chance to win.
On route to winning the Ontario Eliminations, John was a Nervous Nellie because his teams had never gone that far before. The gold medal game went into extra innings and was suspended because of darkness. (It didn’t help that with one out away Todd Betts spiked the ball with a throw over to first, impossible for Jeff Michaels to pick – we were one out away from winning …)
I arrived at the ballpark the next morning and Linda was there. She wasn’t there all weekend. Linda told me before the game continued that John sounded like a wreck, so she drove to Sarnia late at night to be there for John. Linda, for a petite person, you are a very big rock.
After winning the game, I have never seen John happier. He said to me right after that this was the happiest day of his life.
John Jepson (blue top) presents Gareth Morgan with his first place medal after winning the NABF title in 2011.
I believe that Monday morning on that Civic Holiday weekend in August 1992 started John on a bigger path because of the feelings he experienced that day. From that point on, John was to become an ambassador for amateur baseball at all levels, and a leader within the baseball community.
Now, I may not have always agreed with the moves John made as a coach, in fact I really got angry at many of his moves, but I always really, really liked him. So, when I started coaching a few years after playing for John, we grew extremely close. We’re simpatico – yin/yang, good cop/bad cop. You know John was the good cop … I’m not sure he’s even capable of being a bad cop. It all worked and we had fun for many, many years.
John’s family started to really grow. We started the Toronto Mets, we ran the Ontario Youth Teams with Dan Thompson … and we had the ultimate ride. Such a blast. It was truly the time of our lives. We were living in a very long and awesome moment – that will remain forever.
During that time, John loved representing Toronto, Ontario, competing, being a National Champion, and meeting so many people across Canada. “This is what we do” – that’s the mantra John and me had to ourselves and we never shared that with anyone else. And that resulted in lasting memories through six National Championships together. (And I might add that John has another two National Championships, to total eight). What we did tell everybody during those years was the Mets are a family. We quite often referred to the Toronto Mets as the “Mets family” because that’s how we thought of it and that’s how John wanted it to be. And it was. So many people were grateful in how John handled himself with dignity and class. Always there for them.
In those years we really hit the road. From Medicine Hat to Quebec City to Halifax and all the way down to West Palm Beach, and everywhere in between. We had great times everywhere we went and enjoyed every moment. John just loved it.
And John’s family grew even more. Familiar faces from city-to-city, town-to-town, all lit up when John came by, and John’s face always lit up too – right back at ya. Not only was John an ambassador of baseball, he’s a true ambassador of all things good with sports, but more so all things good with people.
Whether it be Linda, his immediate family, long-time friends, coaches, players, parents, even umpires … grounds crews, hotel staff, servers in restaurants, bus drivers, flight attendants, and strangers working behind snack bars, John always treated everybody, and I mean everybody, with equal kindness and respect.
I don’t know if John loved baseball or the Montreal Canadians more (I actual suspect it became baseball – and that says a lot, given his love for the Habs) but No. 1 for him is Linda. Linda, you are the love of his life. While baseball and some of his jobs at Quaker State and Castrol took him away for lengthy periods of time, thank you for sharing John with all of us. Throughout every place John has been, he always knew where home was. To go along with his kindness, John is extremely loyal – loyal to all things he cared for and loved: Linda, immediate family, baseball, the Habs, and all of his friends.
Yesterday, I drove to Bond Park in North York because that was John’s favorite baseball place. I walked around and remembered a bunch of things and that he used to call his section of the dugout “Coach’s Corner” – and I can still see John sitting there. By taking that seat in that dugout about 30 years ago, John then came to know many of us and we all became ‘family’.
John, you will be so, so missed, and because of you we will always remain to be family.
Terrriers at sunset: A Terrier parent send Jepson this picture from a game he did not make
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Jepson is survived by his sister Gale, who stood vigil at the hospice for the past week, brothers-in-law Mike (Debbie) Cooper and Steven (Liz) Cooper, his brother Jeff (and partner Debbie) and stepsister Kim.
The ball diamonds won’t be as friendly a place to visit next season ... something will be missing at so many locations from North York to Oakville and in between.