Family and friends of the late John Elsarelli gathered Sept. 10 in Addison Township’s Labodie Park to dedicate a memorial to a man who loved his lake and his community.
‘I’m honored that the community would think so much of John,? said his wife, Marilyn Elsarelli.
Beneath the cool shade of a tree, next to the park’s quaint gazebo, now sits a large boulder with a plaque that reads: ‘In memory of John T. Elsarelli for his service and dedication to Lakeville Lake and Addison Township December 13, 1954 – December 27, 2005.?
Elsarelli died of pancreatic cancer after an 18-month battle with the disease which he faced with dignity, courage and humor.
From the time he and his wife moved to Lakeville Lake in 1981 until his passing four years ago, Elsarelli was the ‘driving force? behind the Lakeville Lake Property Owners Association, which sponsored the memorial.
‘He saw projects that needed to be done and he would do them,? said Joan Trevaskis, who chaired the memorial committee that’s been working on the project since 2006. ‘He was a worker . . . When he left, there were so many gaps.?
Elsarelli, who grew up on Oxbow Lake in White Lake Township, did everything from run the weed harvesting machine to serve as board president. No job was too big or too small for him. By doing everything, Marilyn said her husband ‘got to know almost every person on the lake?
‘He was a source of information and he would give you an answer, he wouldn’t give you the run around,? noted Trevaskis, who used to live on Lakeville Lake and serve on the association board before she moved to Clarkston.
At first, Marilyn was hesitant about the idea of a memorial for her husband.
‘In the beginning, I wasn’t really sure that it was necessary to do because John was a really private person and he didn’t do the things he did for notoriety,? she explained. ‘He did them because he cared about his community and the people and the places that were in it.?
But then she realized the memorial was about more than just what he did in life, it was about ‘people coming together as a community? and ‘trying to carry on? Elsarelli’s spirit of service.
‘It leaves a legacy to all of us to take care of our community,? Marilyn said.
When he wasn’t busy caring for the lake, Elsarelli was the building official for Addison Township and the Village of Oxford for a number of years.
During the dedication ceremony about 20 of the 30 or so folks in attendance said a few kind words about Elsarelli or shared a memory of him.
‘It just shows you what a likeable person he was,? Trevaskis said. ‘There were a lot of things that I hadn’t heard before.?
‘It nice for my children and for John’s mother, who attended the ceremony, to hear that about their father and her son,? Marilyn noted. ‘It just reminded me that he’s more than himself. He’s the sum of all the people that he touched in life.?