Obituary of Timothy J. Quinn

Timothy J. Quinn was born to John F. & Elizabeth L. (McIntire) Quinn on October 14th, 1956. The 3rd in a line of 6 siblings within 9 years, older brothers John & Bob before him, then Pat, Maureen & Theresa came after. We all grew up in the home on the corner of Klein & Transit roads in Williamsville, NY at a time when farmland was still all around us. As young children our good Irish parents made sure we all attended St. Gregory the Great Church.  John, Bob, Tim & Pat all took their turns through the years as altar boys. For the first few years of we attended school there as well. Tim was usually accompanied by his female classmates & I would wave to them in the hall. Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Brownies & Girl Scouts were part of the fabric of  life for us all during that time, it kept us very busy. In middle school we would ride our bikes around the neighborhood, down to the park or shopping plaza & not be back until just before dark. At home, Tim was the one who would wrap a towel around his neck as a cape, because we were playing “Bat Man” in the basement & he needed to save the day! BAM! WACK! POW! Then along came “Star Treck”, he was now “Captain Kirk”!  His imagination was endless…   A favorite memory of mine in our younger years is when he invited his 5th grade “girlfriend” over, only for his interest to be focused on Star Treck, that’s when I made my first best friend Barbie & we still are today. Barb recalled the same memory along with stating Tim was her first boyfriend, had STP stickers on everything & played on whatever he could with his drum sticks  Thanks Tim, I’m forever grateful!!!  He spent his high school years attending Williamsville North, graduated became an EMT, was a Fireman, then started working at Jack Spector’s Camera Shop. His older brother John knew Jack’s daughter, Lori (who married John’s friend Jack Bender). Tim knew John was good at fixing things, especially electrical gadgets. Once Mr. Spector knew that, John spent some time working alongside Tim at the store. 

  During the Blizzard of 1977, he was the only one at home with mom & dad, also the only one who could climb out the 2nd story window to dig down through the snow, locate the shovel & clear the drift off the doors that had been snowed shut. A real life “save the day” story!

  When his nephew’s would go visit their Uncle they were usually greeted by a cat, dog, or their favorite – Tim’s Cockatiels (Photo & Graph) who did tricks. They also enjoyed hearing Tim play his drums, especially when it was “In-a godda-da-vida!  I know his brother Bob taught him a few things on the drums & guitar. At that time he had a dark room set up to process his pictures, digital has definitely helped that process become less time consuming. His sister, Theresa remembers working with a waitress who had mentioned her dad was always looking for good photographers, so she gave her coworker Tim’s number. It was shortly after that he began working as a Photographer for Smitty at Sloan Photo Studio until Smitty retired. Tim was the one who took lots of family pictures, once in a while he was in them too. He enjoyed the reunions with the Quinn side and the McIntire side, the pictures showed how much we enjoyed each other’s company, the games we would play & how fast the little ones were growing up. 

  After our parents became empty nesters Dad & Mom Quinn moved to a warmer climate in Florence, S.C.  While Mom was in the nursing home with Alzheimer’s, Tim would bring his guitar to play for her & the other residents. It brought a big smile of enjoyment to their faces. Tim would also bring his camera to get family pictures at the park in SC when the Azaleas were in bloom, Mom really cherished those & Pat realized the eye Tim had for nature & beauty as his pictures over the years brought out his talent. Tim was the one who captured the family gathering for John & Betty Quinn’s 50th Wedding Anniversary, their 6 kids & grandchildren attended along with Dad’s siblings. I appreciate those pictures more now. After Mom passed, then & Dad, those were times we all as siblings were together. Our cousins from Ohio joined us in S.C. before Bob’s passing, it was the last time as sibling we would be all together. 

   The Smith family became Tim’s family & their friendships remained strong even after the Photo Studio closed & Tim went to work for Walmart.  After a storm that toppled a tree onto his trailer home, with the help of Darcie, one of Smitty’s 7 daughters, Tim found a studio apartment that fit his needs in the same building as Darcie & Anne, Smitty’s wife. The Dollar Store around the corner from Tim was a convenient place to work part time; he met all kinds of new people there & usually had a story to tell about the weekly happenings. Things change throughout life, except the snowfall in Buffalo New York. That is what scattered Tim’s parents & most of his siblings to venture into warmer climates across the States. Florida called to Darci & Ann after Smitty passed, but they continued to stay in touch & visited when vacationing to N.Y.  Since Tim’s move into the apartments, he has made many friends there who will miss him greatly, as we all will. 

  Timothy was preceded in death by his parents, John F. & Elizabeth L. (McIntire) Quinn, his brother Robert N. Quinn, sister in law (Bob) Joylene Quinn, sister in law (John) Kimberly Quinn, sister in law (Pat) Bonnie Quinn, nephew Christopher M. Quinn & brother in law (Terri) Bart Horne.

   Surviving are his Uncle Fred & Aunt Dorothy (Quinn) Langdon of NY, Aunt Helen (Quinn) Roland of NY, brothers; John M. Quinn of TX, Patrick A. Quinn of NY, sisters; Maureen E. (Allen) (Quinn) Rude of OK, Terri (Theresa Quinn) Horne of SC. Nephews; Nathaniel J. (Stephanie) Humston of N.C., William L. Humston III of TX, Daniel Quinn of NY, John P. Quinn of TX, Buddy (Leonard)(Jessica) Blake of SC. Nieces; Lisa M. (Greg) Toniolo of SC, Elizabeth M. (Mike) Warden of TX, numerous Great Nephews & Great Nieces, a Great Great Nephew, Cousins & many friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zscsbWzIHo