back           John Spring : A Tribute by Wally Fantuzzi


I can′t remember when I first met Johnny. We would have been 8 or 9 years old. My mother said John would turn up with a bag full of food and we would explore the creeks, go camping in the caves near my home and we used to dig tunnels. We eventually both worked underground at Mt. Isa although we were on different shifts. He was the life of the party. Springy as we called him was a care free soul. He did not have a bad bone in his body and would help anyone. When we got together we always had a good time. Everybody thought Springy was a clown because he used to make everybody laugh but deep down he was very talented. He flew gliders when he was about 13−14 years old; he got his licence to fly single engined Cessnas and even took my family up. He rode Road Bikes like a pro and used to impress us with his long wheel stands and smoky burnouts. He was a self taught musician playing the flute piano & guitar and entertained us all the time. He was a mechanical genius and knew everything mechanical. Even I used to ring him up for advice all the time. He started as an apprentice at Kent Ford Mt. Isa and even worked on the legendary GTHO Phase 3s. He worked underground at Mount Isa Mines and later at Kalgoorlie and other mines as a miner. He travelled all over Australia and even worked for Ashton Circus where he looked after the elephants. He restumped houses in Brisbane which wrecked his back and that started a chain of events which finally put him on a pension. He always talked about the home cooked meals his mum made for him and he loved his food. He admired his dad and always talked about the old days when his dad would be working with steam engines and later on in Mt Isa Mines and how he was a perfectionist and if his dad could see how I treated my tools I′d be in big trouble. Springy will always be remembered as a gentle giant. I will miss our long phone calls, the fortnightly visits and the love you had for my family. Thanks for all the good times Johnny and all the help and love you have given me the past 46 years. May you rest in PEACE.