Johnathan S. Giardina

Mars Hill - Johnathan Stein Giardina, 33, of 2572 Fox Creek Road died unexpectedly Thursday October 16, 2003. A native of San Francisco, California, he had resided in Yancey County for the past 4 years. He was a paramedic with the Buncombe County Rescue Squad where he held the rank of Captain. Johnathan was a certified Swift Water Rescue Technician, an Emergency Rescue Technician and a Search and Rescue Technician. Surviving are his parents, Nicholas and Mary Deborah Marinello Giardina of the home; brother, Nicholas G. Giardina of Los Angeles, California; paternal grandparents, John and Helen Giardina of Buffalo, NY; maternal grandmother, Rita S. Marinello of Scottsdale, AZ.; girlfriend, Lindsay Jellison of Black Mtn. and a number of Aunts, Uncles and Cousins of the Hess Family, the VanVolkenburg Family, the Hirtreiter Family and the Varga Family. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 A.M. Monday an Anders-Rice Funeral Home with Father Dave Brzoska officiating and honors conducted by the Buncombe County Firefighters Association Honor Guard. Burial will be in the Giardina Family Cemetery in Yancey County. The family will receive friends from 4 to 6:00 P.M. Sunday at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to: Buncombe County Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 6311, Asheville, N.C. 28816. The family would like to express their appreciation to all the members of the Buncombe County Rescue Squad and to the faculty, staff and fellow students in the EMS Program at A-B Tech. A special thanks to David Plyler, Ned Fowler and Amanda Soule who encouraged and helped in the pursuit of his career as a paramedic.