Jon P. Barstow

Jon Paul Barstow, the beloved husband of Susan Belanich, passed away at his Westford residence on Friday, December 17, 2021 following a courageous battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Jon was 55.

Born in Stoneham, he was the son of the late Jean LeBlanc, Robert Barstow of Woburn, and his stepmother Judy Keenan of FL. He was a member of the Stoneham High School class of 1984, graduating from Northeastern University in 1989 with a degree in computer science.

Jon and Susan met while working at Massachusetts General Hospital and have spent the last 28 years together. They moved to Westford in 1997.

Jon joined Comcast as a network engineer in 1997 and continued there until his death. He enjoyed gardening, hiking, skiing, snorkeling, kayaking, making fire, and puttering around the house and yard. Above all, he loved building things, be it a network, a massive book case, a death ray machine, or a bear-proof dinosaur-shaped bird feeder. He leaves behind more tools and label makers than are acceptable in polite company and a lot of objects no one can identify.

Possessed of a dry wit, Jon was refreshingly direct, bordering on infuriatingly blunt. He valued competence in others above all things, and had an abiding respect for technology and science. When diagnosed, he chose to enroll in a clinical trial and to leave his body to ALS research, in hopes of helping future generations end this disease. His humor and his passion will be sorely missed.

Surviving Jon besides his wife, father, and stepmother are two daughters, Ciara and Sarah Barstow, both of Westford; his siblings and their spouses, Gregory and Stephanie Barstow of Boston, Beverly Sullivan of Woburn, Andrea and Mark Andrews of Saugus, Kimberly Barstow and Leland Wilder of East Dummerston, Vermont; his father-in-law Michael Belanich of Hyde Park, NY and the late Ann Belanich; and several nieces and nephews.

Relatives and friends are invited to Jon's Celebration of Life on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 in the Westford Healy Funeral Home, 57 North Main Street, Westford, from 10 until 11 AM. Funeral services will follow at 11:00 AM. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, he would have appreciated a small donation to either the Westford Conservation Trust (https://westfordconservationtrust.org/) or the Massachusetts Chapter of the ALS Association (https://www.als.org/massachusetts).

Out of respect for his wishes, and to protect all those he loved, Jon's family kindly request that only vaccinated friends and family attend the service. Please note that masks are required at all times.

To attend Jon's services remotely click the following link on Tuesday, January 4, 2022 at 11:00 AM

https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/2087784969