John Melvin Stokley Jr. of Rancho Bernardo passed away peacefully at home on September 14, 2009, with his family at his side. He was born on July 18, 1923, in Kansas City, Missouri, to John and Winnie Stokley. John served in the U.S. Army during World War II throughout Europe. After returning home, he met and married his wife, Barbara, also of Kansas City, Missouri, in 1948. In 1956, they relocated to California where he soon began a career at NCR in El Segundo, Ca, then transferred to Rancho Bernardo in 1970, and retired in 1986. John was a baseball enthusiast all of his life and was a loyal San Diego Padres fan and attended as many games as he could with Barbara and his grandsons. His grandsons are now devoted Padres fans also, because of their grandparents. After retiring, John and Barbara were able to travel and took one trip in particular to Europe where they visited some of the places John saw while serving in the Army. John was a devoted and loving husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Barbara; his children; Ruth Anne Barnes, John Stokley, Susan Hinman and Barbara Juliano; grandchildren, Joel and Sean Barnes, Lisa, Kevin and Russell Hinman, and Philip Stokley; and great-grandchildren, Caitlynn, Jacob and Tyler Barnes. A Memorial service was held at Poway-Bernardo Mortuary on September 19, 2009. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Elizabeth Hospice, Escondido, California ( http://www.elizabethhospice.org/). Inurnment will be at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery.