John J. Savini, 82, salesman and father of 10

John J. Savini, 82, of Havertown, a retired meat company salesman and father of 10, died of leukemia on Wednesday, Oct. 5, at Bryn Mawr Hospital.

During more than four decades in sales, Mr. Savini worked for Swift & Co., Cross Bros. Meat Packers, Stein-Henry Meats, and Nofer & Sons Meats. His territory extended from Pennsylvania to Washington, D.C. When he changed jobs, his clients followed him, his wife, Helen Miller Savini, said.

He wasn't loud and flamboyant, his wife said. He represented a new breed of low-key but persuasive salespeople, she said. He retired in 1999.

Mr. Savini grew up in Wayne and graduated from Radnor High School.

He and his future wife met at a dance hall in Ardmore and married in 1952. During the early years of their marriage, he worked in the Delaware County Courthouse in Media and had a second job at the A&P store in Wayne.

For 18 years, Mr. Savini coached CYO basketball at St. Denis Roman Catholic Church in Havertown and coached baseball for Havertown Little League.

Mr. Savini was a member of the Holy Name Society at St. Denis, and, in 1968, he was a founder of the St. Denis Family Fun Fair. For years he volunteered at the fair, a major parish fund-raiser.

In 1979, Mr. Savini and his wife received communion from Pope John Paul II at Mass on the Parkway in Philadelphia. They were chosen to represent St. Denis, the oldest parish in Delaware County.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by sons John Jr., Paul, Mark, and Peter; daughters Miriam Hansen, Kathy Hansen, Helen Meehan, Regina Weir, Carol McClintock, and Bernadette Jamieson; three brothers; 24 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

Friends may call from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., Monday, Oct. 10, at Stretch Funeral Home, 236 E. Eagle Rd. A Funeral Mass will be said at 11 a.m. at St. Denis Church, 2401 St. Denis Lane, Havertown. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Donations may be made to the church.