Obituary of John Raeburn Fiddes, Jr.

July 16, 1943 – January 20, 2025

John Raeburn Fiddes, Jr. was born to Jack and Doris Fiddes in Montreal, Quebec on July 16, 1943. His father served in England with the Canadian Army during WWII, so John and his mother lived in a modest flat with his father’s large, extended family. Little Johnny was the family’s adored first grandchild.

After the war, John’s parents moved to their own flat while taking in boarders to make ends meet.  John was the oldest of eight children, with five brothers and two sisters, and exceptionally close to his mother who baked his favorite raisin pie on demand.

He attended Verdun High School where he claimed to spend most his time gazing out the window. When John and his brother Alan showed an interest in shooting, their father signed them up for Air Cadets where training included rifle shooting. The brothers became Canadian junior champions and members of the Queen’s 100, the top shooters in the British Commonwealth invited to compete in Bisley, England. John was especially pleased because the recognition included a set of formal clothing that he could not otherwise afford.

His father had emigrated from Edinburgh, Scotland, so John joined other relatives in the Black Watch Regiment based on Montreal. He maintained close relationships with his Black Watch friends and remained a stubborn, independent Scot by proxy.

He attended night school while working as a customs runner in Montreal, then dropped out to join forces with his Air Cadet buddy Fred Collins to sell microwave ovens door to door.  Fred was the methodical planner and John, with his larger-than-life personality, was the ideal front man. Over the next fifty years the partners navigated through a succession of businesses that eventually brought them to Manhattan in the mid-1970s where they felt right at home living and working on Park Avenue. In 1980, having started a franchise chain of eighty restaurants, John and Fred moved their company to New Jersey where the partners eventually founded Fidcol Corporate Brokers.

In spring 1976, John met Jessica Vermylen in a Manhattan bar and, after eloping in 1977, the couple remained married for nearly 48 years. During the 1980s John and Jessica welcomed their four children and settled in Long Valley surrounded by wonderful neighbors. In 2014, they downsized and moved to an apartment in Morristown, NJ.

John was a confident leader with a dry sense of humor and a teasing nature.  He was a devoted father and pushed his children to do their best. Regretting his own lack of formal education, he was pleased that they had the benefit of good schooling and proud that his namesake John III, also an expert shooter, captained the West Point rifle team. A Green Card holder, John was thrilled to be sworn in as an American citizen and felt that the United States was exactly where he belonged.

He worked hard, often seven days a week, to build and sustain his business. A classic entrepreneur, he claimed to be unemployable…and he was probably right. He had very little tolerance for unnecessary rules, inefficiency and laziness, yet was a generous employer and a true gentleman, typically attired in a custom-made pinstripe suit.

John loved his family, both the one he was born into and the one he and Jessica made. He was a supportive son and a protective older brother who kept in touch with his siblings, most of whom reside in Canada. He was a devoted husband who supported his wife’s ambitions, always joking that he was her editor.

He loved the sport of shooting, the Black Watch, opera music, reading spy novels, watching classic westerns, driving luxury cars and spending time with family and friends. A teetotaler by nature, he had the occasional scotch and enjoyed food in all shapes and forms. The sound of pipers made John cry and so did sentimental movies. For a tough guy, he was a soft touch.

Parkinson’s Disease became John’s last challenge, and he retired in 2022 when he could no longer navigate the short flight of steps that led to his office.

John was resilient and adaptable during his final years. In 2022, he accepted the loss to cancer of his only daughter. He was unfailingly cheerful and polite, grateful for help, never complained, and never quit. He died peacefully at home on January 20 with a backdrop of a fresh snowfall that seemed especially fitting for a boy from Montreal.

John was predeceased by his daughter Alexandra, and is survived by his wife Jessica, three sons, John III of Manhattan, Hugh (Sarah) of Austin, TX and Cameron, also of Austin, two grandchildren, Annabelle and Harrison, and many nieces and nephews in Canada and the United States. His seven siblings and their spouses mourn his loss, as do his Vermylen brother and sister in laws.

John lives on in the memory of everyone who loved him. He died a contented man, appreciative for all he had accomplished, through optimism, determination, and grit, in his 81 years.

In lieu of flowers, please direct donations in John’s memory to the Black Watch of Canada Foundation (memo: John R. Fiddes Jr Memorial Fund), 2067 de Bleury Street, Montreal, QC H3A 2K2.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a memorial visitation for John on Wednesday, January 29, 2025 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Madison Memorial Home, 159 Main Street, Madison, NJ.

Service of the Resurrection and Celebration of Life will be held on Thursday, January 30, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. at the Presbyterian Church on the Green, 57 East Park Place, Morristown, NJ.

Interment will be held privately.