John Gin

July 8, 1925 - December 3, 2021

John Gin (Gin Gim Yin) passed away at home on December 3, 2021. John was born on July 8, 1925. He is survived by his wife of 72 years Mary Gin, five adult children David (Jane), Donald (Jennifer), Dick (Cynthia), Alice (Daniel), Doug (Amy); eleven grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren. John came to the United States as a young teen. He attended Safford Junior High School and served in the US Army. He was recently honored with a congressional gold medal for Chinese American Veterans who served during WWII. John and his wife Mary owned and operated a small neighborhood grocery store, Johnny’s Complete Foods, located in Barrio Sovaco (the armpit barrio) on the west side of town. The family lived in the back portion of the store. The store served the neighborhood for approximately fifty plus years. The store was a gathering place for young and old. Credit was extended to those whom could not pay until the next pay check or until they were able to pay. Since John’s family lived in the back of the store it was always open to customers even in the late evenings when someone would forget to purchase something during normal open hours. They would knock on the door and John would give them what they needed. John and his wife Mary raised five children while working the store. John’s greatest passion in life was his family and grandchildren. From these humble beginnings they made numerous life time friends and customers spanning many generations. The family would like to express our gratitude to the staff of the Veteran’s Administration Hospital, Total Care, and Hospice Amedisy (Carondelet). We would like to specifically thank Ruby Jaramillo, Ana Romero, and Letha Pare for their kind, sympathetic, understanding and care of our dad as he battled with Parkinson’s. Those wishing to do so can contribute in his memory to the Arizona Department of Veteran’s Services or Tucson Chinese Cultural Center. Services will be held at 10 am at Evergreen Mortuary and Cemetery, 3015 North Oracle Road in Tucson on Saturday, December 18, 2021