Jaroslav Antonin Snobl

Jaroslav (Jerry) was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia on September 30, 1943. At the age of two, Jerry lost his father in WWII, so his mother worked hard to instill core values in him and his older brother, Jenda. He spent his weekends and summers with his grandparents at a 'weekend house' in the outskirts of Prague. Jerry made friends with everyone in town, enjoyed hunting for mushrooms, and loved exploring the forest and caves in the area.As a teenager, Jerry saved his money to buy a motorcycle to drive throughout the countryside. He served in the Czech army and lived in Czechoslovakia until his mid-20s, but seeking freedom from communism, he escaped to Germany where he lived for two years. He waited patiently for his visa which would allow him to enter the country where he always dreamed of living - the United States of America. He arrived in New York with a cookbook and a photo album, and after one day he left for Chicago where he lived for two years.While visiting a friend in California, Jerry fell in love with the state and was offered a job as a machinist with Baker Oil Tools. He quickly drove back to Chicago to gather his few belongings and returned to live in Downey, California, where he met Lucy in 1974. Jerry and Lucy were married a year later. Soon after, they bought their home in La Mirada, California. In 1978 they welcomed their first child, Sonia, into the world and followed two years later with their son David.Jerry owned and operated his own machine shop, JAS Machining. While raising his family, he instilled in all of them his love of the outdoors. They camped and travelled often.As a true outdoorsman, he enjoyed target shooting, hunting for deer and rabbits, sailing, and most of all camping. Other special interests included playing pool, reading, and telling stories and jokes. In addition, when he got the urge to have Czech food, he would pull out his mother's large, yellow cookbook and would prepare delicious Czech meals that the entire family would enjoy.Jerry was a family man who adored his two children, Sonia and David, and his three grandchildren, Danica, Derrick, and Devyn. He was a wonderful husband, father and grandfather who loved babysitting his grandchildren. The family will ALL remember his incredible sense of humor.