John 'JJ' Scott, 76

John “JJ” Scott arrived on this earth at Boston, Mass., on July 9, 1947, as the only child born to Rose Sevigny and her husband, John Ribeiro.

From the age of 8, he was raised by his mother and his adoptive father Joseph Torres Scott. In this home he joined his six step-siblings, Rita, Joseph, Gerald, Delores, Linda and Gina Scott.

This family was a representative example of a truly international blend of the melting pot the United States became. His mother was born in St. Adrienne de Ham in Quebec, Canada and spoke French with English as her second language. John’s biological father was born in Lisbon, Portugal, and spoke Portuguese while his adoptive father was born in Santiago, Cuba and spoke Spanish. They all had English as their second language. All of the children were born in Massachusetts and had English as their primary language.

As an "inner city" kid he and his two brothers and four sisters spent their summers at youth camps on Cape Cod. It was there that his first exposures to wildlife led him to pursue a career that he thoroughly enjoyed for 32 years. 

After attending Boston English and Boston Latin, his family moved to Abington, Mass., where John graduated from Abington High School in 1966. While still in high school he enlisted in the Navy Reserves and upon graduation was assigned to duty aboard a helicopter carrier, the USS Guam. Upon completion of his tour of active duty, he returned to Abington where in July of 1969 he married his high school sweetheart, Marie Snaith, at St. Bridget’s Catholic Church.  

He was often heard to say that he wanted to attend college and obtain work where wildlife conservation was a way of life and not just a topic of conversation as it was in Massachusetts. He never lost sight of his dream. That led him and Marie to Moscow, Idaho, in 1970. Using the GI Bill he graduated with honors with a BS degree in Forestry, Wildlife and Range Sciences. During this period their lives were blessed with the arrival of their first son, Gregory.

While working on the fire crews for the U.S. Forest Service at Clarkia, Idaho, the hoped-for phone call came from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. He was hired as a fish culturist in fisheries and was assigned to the Hagerman Fish Hatchery. He had his foot in the door and put on his patience hat to wait for an opening in the enforcement division. 

In 1975, JJ was transferred to the Hayspur Hatchery near Picabo, Idaho. Here the family was graced once again by the birth of their second child, Jason. Three years later, in 1978, John came in after feeding the hatchery fish with a smile on his face that lit up the room. Boise had called. They wanted him as a conservation officer and he’d been assigned to Pocatello! The family started packing that night. 

In 1980, John and Marie and their sons transferred from Pocatello to Clark Fork where he spent the next 25 years doing the job that he loved. He was heard to say many times that it is the rare person who gets to do a job that they thoroughly enjoy in an area where they love to live. He felt so honored to have had that opportunity. Even during his free time he spent it enjoying the surrounding natural resources by fishing, hiking, hunting, boating, swimming and snowmobiling with family and friends. His favorite memories included the annual muzzle loader hunt he undertook with his sons. He retired from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game in 2005 from a career that spanned over 32 years. 

He and Marie have spent the winters of their retirement years traveling the United States in their RV. They would stop for a time in an area that interested them and after exploration they’d move on to another area. They have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity for new experiences this has afforded them. Due to John’s declining health, in 2017 they sold the RV and gave up the nomad lifestyle and spent the winter months at their "winter cabin" in the Sun City West area of Arizona. They eventually moved there permanently in 2019. It was here that he passed away in the early morning hours of May 12, 2024.

John was a hard worker and had a good life.  Those of us who lived with him or got to know him were blessed by our association with him. He was a good man. He was loved. He will be sadly missed and fondly remembered.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Marie Snaith Scott, at their Sun City West, Ariz., home; and by their two sons and their families, Greg and Lisa (Ratliff) Scott at Winnemucca, Nev., and their two children, Justin and Danielle Scott, and Jason and Kelly Jo (Stephan) Scott at Tifton, Ga., and their two children, Mabel Rose and Aidan Scott. Also surviving him are his sister-in-law, Patricia Snaith Gormley and her husband, Steven Gormley of Port Saint Lucie, Fla.

John was predeceased by his parents; his stepbrother, Gerald; and his stepsister, Delores.  

The family will privately gather to scatter his remains over the land and lake that he loved.