Mar 15, 2018 3 min read

John Weaver’s life story sounds like it would make a good screenplay. That may be appropriate, being that he worked as a movie extra in Hollywood for five years. That’s a long way from Morgantown, W. Va., where Weaver was born back in 1930. Along the way, he lived in two other states and has had many other occupations.

“I’m a certified scuba diver and I took flying lessons and soloed but I never got my license,” Weaver will tell you.

So just who is this spry 87-year-old Mt. Morris resident? For one thing, he’s the oldest sheriff’s deputy in Pennsylvania. “I graduated from the sheriff’s academy in Carlisle on my 66th birthday,” he laughs and adds that the current sheriff refers to him as a legend.

Weaver was born in the Westover section of Morgantown in 1930 as one of eight children. He became a machinist by trade and eventually moved to Canton, Ohio, where he lived for 28 years. He married Donna Jean Batten in 1952 and, in addition to his machinist job, the two owned and operated the Weaver Parkade Restaurant in Canton. John served in the United States Navy for two years just before the Korean War then had a son, also named John, who went to college at UCLA. Eventually, John and Donna Jean headed west and followed their son to Southern California. There, John worked for Rockwell International in Santa Monica and spent a year attending a trade college.

When he got laid off from his machinist job, a mutual friend who worked in the movie and music industry suggested Weaver try something completely different: acting. He gave it a try and wound up working as an extra in movies in Hollywood for five years.

The Weavers moved back east to help care for John’s mother when she became ill. It was then that another chapter in John’s career started when he was appointed constable. That was 25 years ago, and then Sheriff Richard Ketchum asked him to work part time as a casual deputy. Weaver accepted and enjoyed the work. He’s continued as a casual deputy for Greene County with a few breaks for 25 years. Now, he’s officially the oldest sheriff’s deputy in the state of Pennsylvania.

“When they see me, people say I’m probably 60 or 65,” boasts the energetic octogenarian.

He’s still very healthy, but some back problems unfortunately sidelined Weaver from his deputy duties over the past year. What’s he doing to keep busy? For one thing, Weaver says enjoys doing the word puzzles in the Observer-Reporter each morning and also gets a kick out of feeding the many ducks on his property in Mt. Morris.

“I have white ducks and wild mallards and I feed them twice a day,” he says. “I’m just about to go get some corn ready for them,” he tells me the morning that we spoke.

As for his secret to longevity, he doesn’t really have one. Perhaps, one could venture, it might be his wry sense of humor. When asked how he stays so young, he laughs, “I joke around and I tell the young guys that I drank all my life, smoked cigarettes and gambled and it all worked out!”