Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
Appliance Healer: John Finan repairs donated equipment at Price Charming, a store owned by Hospice of the Valley.
Public Citizen
Fixer-Upper
Ex-engineer John Finan puts his skills to work for hospice thrift shop
By Erin Mayes
John Finan is a tinkerer. A retired mechanical engineer, the 70-year-old spends about four hours a week at Price Charming, plugging in, prodding, poking and otherwise adjusting donated electronic equipment.
Price Charming is a second-hand store owned by Hospice of the Valley, a nonprofit organization that provides for families facing terminal illnesses.
Finan began volunteering about five years ago after he saw a notice asking for volunteers in a newsletter at IBM, where he used to work as a mechanical engineer.
He said one reason he decided to volunteer was to stay active as a retiree, but he is also gratified by the work he does there.
"It's something I enjoy doing and I think is beneficial," Finan said.
Back in a crowded corner of the store, Finan pointed out his work area, which is brimming with computers, monitors, radios, vacuums, blenders and other gadgets.
"A lot of this stuff does work," he said. "They aren't things that have been out in garages."
Often, families that are being aided by Hospice of the Valley will donate their deceased relatives' belongings, which are usually in working order, Finan said.
Weather permitting, he sometimes rides his bicycle from his home in Saratoga to Price Charming in Campbell. He doesn't think that's such a big deal because, "It's all flat around here, anyway."
Finan and his wife, Joanne, have lived in Saratoga for about 35 years, and recently celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary. Joanne also volunteers at Price Charming.
The couple didn't start out in the Bay Area. Finan grew up in Washington, D.C., with three sisters and three brothers. He met Joanne there on a blind date.
Finan began working for IBM as soon as he graduated from college in 1954 with a degree in physics. The company moved him out to California and sent him back to school, where he earned his master's degree in mechanical engineering.
John and Joanne raised their three children in Saratoga and, now that the kids are all grown up, they are the proud grandparents of four.
Finan has found other places to volunteer, as well. He has been a math tutor at Oak Grove High School for about 15 years, which he also began doing through IBM. And, one day a week, he serves as math tutor for his granddaughter, who is in the eighth-grade.
When Finan isn't volunteering, he is out on the golf links or "puttering around the house." He is also obligated to cut the grass now and then.
Price Charming is located at 1614 W. Campbell Ave. The store accepts donations Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 408.370.4810.
Campbell, California
