John C. McCafferty
Following a lengthy illness, John C. McCafferty, Colonel, USAF (Retired), passed away Sunday, December 1, 2019, in the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System.
A son of Monica Harrington and the late John A. McCafferty, John was born in Cambridge, Mass., March 4, 1957.
Colonel McCafferty graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, in 1979. In 1983, he graduated from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences F. Edward Herbert School of Medicine in Bethesda, Md., then completed his general surgery residency at Wright State University, Fairborn, Ohio. He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He was a member of the Cecil American Legion and Cuddy Veterans of Foreign Wars in Pennsylvania.
Colonel McCafferty entered the U.S. Air Force through Reserve Officer Training Corps Commission in 1979 and served his country on active duty 32 years as a general surgeon, critical care surgeon, flight surgeon and commander. Colonel McCafferty had multiple overseas deployments to include Bosnia-Herzegovina (Bosnia War), Oman following the USS Cole tragedy, and United Kingdom (OPERATION Enduring Freedom). One of the first Critical Care Transport Team (CCAT) surgeons, his deployment to many countries in the Middle East, including Afghanistan during OPERATION Enduring Freedom, proved lifesaving to many service members who sustained life-threatening war injuries.
His military decorations include the Legion of Merit Award, Southwest Asia Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Aerial Achievement Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal and Humanitarian Service Medal.
John was preceded in death by his father, John A. McCafferty of Cambridge.
He is survived by and will be immensely missed by his wife of 21 years, Mary Novak-McCafferty of Cecil, who cared and advocated for him throughout his illness and was at his bedside in his final days; his mother, Monica Harrington McCafferty of Cambridge; and his siblings, Anthony (Maria Wojtaszek) of Cupertino, Calif., Elizabeth (Graham) Burt of Storrington, United Kingdom, Richard (Edna Ramalho) of Arlington, Mass., and Phillip McCafferty of Cambridge. John loved and will also be missed by his in-laws, Jean and Ed Scholtz, Robert and Kathy Novak, Maureen Bedel Novak, Margaret Novak, Diane and Bruce Koontz and Linda Novak, and his nephews and nieces, Neil and John McCafferty, Clint, Mark and Michael Novak, Eddie and Sarah Scholtz and Matthew, Jessica and Madison Koontz.
Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday in Coleman-Taylor Funeral Services, 3378 Millers Run Road, Cecil, PA 15321, 724-745-9510, were prayers of transfer will be said at 9 a.m. Friday, December 6, followed by a Christian Funeral Mass in St. Mary Church, Cecil, with Monsignor Joseph Lamonde officiating. Interment will be in National Cemetery of the Alleghenies, Cecil Township, with full military honors accorded by the U.S. Air Force.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to: Center for Military Medicine Research, www.cmmr.pitt.edu, 412-624-3420; Disabled American Veterans, www.dav.org, 1-855-619-4376; or William K. Rundell Jr. Endowment Fund, www.wright.edu/give/rundell, 937-775-4547.