John V. Kostigian

1924 - 2017  (92 years)

• Name	John V. Kostigian
  Born	23 Aug 1924	Owen Sound, Grey Co., Ontario, Canada
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	band leader
  		Kostigian,John-0001-musicsheet.jpg
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-385561
  Died	19 May 2017
  Buried	Parklawn Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  Person ID	I385561	Generations
  Last Modified	9 Jun 2025

  
  

  Family	Joan G. Case,   b. 29 Jan 1927,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Married	1954
  Last Modified	10 Jun 2025
  Family ID	F261385	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Obituary: Big Band leader, businessman, community builder and family man John Kostigian of Cambridge. Born: Aug. 23, 1924, in Owen Sound; Died: May 10, 2017, of age-related illness Jun 11, 2017 by Valerie Hill Waterloo Region Record John Kostigian had many successes in life as a business owner and community builder, but he always considered his greatest achievement to be the 30 years he spent as Leisure Lodge's house band leader. "A lot of people didn't know he had a business, that he was just a band leader," said his son Jason Kostigian, who has operated Galt Display Rack since his dad retired a decade ago. Leisure Lodge was a popular Cambridge nightclub that ran from 1948 until the place suspiciously burned to the ground in 1980. People came from far and wide to dance the night away to the swinging sounds of the Johnny Kostigian Orchestra. At its peak, the 13-piece band would play Friday and Saturday nights to an audience of 1,100 patrons, many who had travelled from across the province to this hot spot. "There was nothing like it around, it had class," Johnny once told The Record. "Leisure Lodge put Preston on the map."..... John was born one of three to parents who came first to Owen Sound and later Cambridge from Armenia. Though John never wanted to visit his parent's homeland '97 too much pain associated with the reason the family had to flee '97 he always supported the Armenian community. Historians estimate the Ottoman Empire killed 1.5 million Armenians during the First World War and this legacy carried over into Canada and into the lives of people like John..... Hill, V. (2017). Obituary: Big Band leader, businessman, community builder and family man | TheRecord.com. TheRecord.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017, from https://www.therecord.com/living-story/7365665-obituary-big-band-leader-businessman-community-builder-and-family-man/

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 23 Aug 1924 - Owen Sound, Grey Co., Ontario, Canada Buried - - Parklawn Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth