John H. Palmer

With great sadness, we announce the passing of John H. Palmer of Waltham, MA.  He passed peacefully in his sleep on February 5, 2025. John was born in 1933 in Bristol, Vermont. He moved to Waltham, MA with his parents, Frank, and Catherine (Guthrie) Palmer, when he was eight years old.
John remained in Waltham his entire life except for four years in the Navy, enlisting in 1953 during the Korean war.
He was married for 63 years to his high school sweetheart, the late Janice C (Bell) Palmer.
His second lifetime love was ice hockey. A graduate of Waltham High School and then Northeastern University, John played varsity ice hockey in both High school and college. He would later be involved in the Waltham Youth Hockey program from its inception in 1971, holding every office from Head Coach to President. In addition, he would later become involved in coaching women's ice hockey for both the Waltham Wings and Boston Ice Sharks women's teams. John continued to play hockey himself up until the age of 75.
Upon retirement from Raytheon, John and Janice were able to live out their dream of traveling the U.S. together in their motor home every summer for 21 years.  They visited every State in the Continental U.S. John is survived by his daughter Lynne (Palmer) Panno of Brimfield, MA, his son Todd Palmer of Waltham, MA and his grandson Duncan Palmer and his wife Chelsea of Spencer, MA, as well as many beloved cousins and extended family. John's devotion to family, and hockey, and his big infectious laugh will forever be missed.

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