Patrick R. Carroll lived a full life of devotion to his wife, his family and an indomitable trust in the future.
The son of Irish immigrants, Patrick J. Carroll and Catherine (Stewart) Carroll, Pat was the youngest of seven to grow up in Mission Hill, Roxbury. He attended the Redemptorists Junior Seminary for two years, followed by Boston College High, during which time he met Irene E. Prunty of Brookline Village with whom he would inseparably share all that followed.
He enrolled in Dartmouth College, and signed up for the Navy officer program. He served as tail-gunner in a dive bomber on the carrier Essex in the Pacific campaign and was in Tokyo harbor for the surrender of Japan.
When the war ended Patrick became a reporter for the Boston Post. He married Irene on January 31, 1948. He re-enlisted in the military as a Marine Corps sergeant, and worked as a recruiter, before being commissioned to Korea which separated him from his growing family back home. His verbal skills landed him a job at the Stars and Stripes newspaper, and in 1955 moved to Tokyo, Japan to take the post of Editor. There he was able to reunite with Irene, two sons, William and Robert, and daughter Susan. A second daughter, Kathy, was born in 1958.
After retiring from the Marines, Pat reported for the Louisville (Kentucky) Times. His coverage of health care issues led to his return to Massachusetts as Director of Public Relations for the Massachusetts Hospital Association. While he and Irene raised their four children in Brockton, he commuted to Burlington and earned a law degree taking night classes at Suffolk University. After passing the bar exam, he was appointed General Counsel of the Massachusetts Hospital Association a position he held for twenty-five years. He lived in Chelmsford before retiring with Irene to Chatham Massachusetts in 1989. Pat continued to practice law privately for many years mostly on a pro-bono basis.
Pat’s greatest joy was family and friends. He celebrated his Irish heritage and sought his roots in research and frequent visits to Ireland to re-sew the threads of his family. He relished the good-natured unruliness of large family gatherings, but the well-being of every member of his extended family was also his private concern. He was keenly interested in the personal and occupational success of his seven grandchildren.
His earliest group of friends from Mission Hill, the “Mohawks” remained in touch throughout their lives, and after retirement their golf tournaments were big events. Pat loved traveling anywhere that involved family or friends, especially for annual reunions with his colleagues at Stars and Stripes
Pat loved competition and was indeed better than average at everything he attempted, whether it was arguing a legal point, golf, tennis, or a backyard bean bag toss. He was noted for his wit and wisdom; all who had any contact with Pat Carroll would remark at his integrity, intelligence, and his great head of hair.
In later years, as a man a fewer words, he could still remind how blessed he knew himself to be with the essential truth of his life exclaiming: “Isn’t this wonderful!”
He is predeceased by all his siblings, Charles Carroll, Mae McLaughlin, Andrew (Skip) Carroll, Kate Carroll, Will Carroll, and Ann Carroll; also by two nephews, Donald and Richard McLaughlin.
He is survived by his wife, Irene Carroll, of Attleboro, his son William Carroll and his wife Eda of Boston, his son Robert Carroll (Major USMC-Ret.) and his wife Lee of Watertown, his daughter Susan Lague and her husband Mark of Attleboro, and his daughter Kathy Steele and her husband Allan of Plainville. He leaves his grandchildren, Liam Carroll, Ryan Carroll, and Neil Carroll all of Boston, Michelle Lague of West Hatfield, Kevin Lague, his wife Holly, and his great granddaughter Georgiana Lague of New Glarus, Wisconsin, Shannon Steele Oles and her husband Brian of Franklin, and Sarah Steele of Wrentham. He leaves many nephews and nieces, all of whom were attached to their Uncle Pat.
His funeral, to which relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend, will be held on Saturday, April 18th beginning at 10:00 A.M. from the Sherman & Jackson Funeral Home, 55 North Main St., Mansfield, followed by a Mass of Christian burial celebrated at 11:00 A.M. in St. Mary’s Church, 330 Pratt St. (Route 106) Mansfield. Burial with military honors will follow at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Mansfield.
Visiting hours will be held on Friday, April 17th from 5:00-8:00 P.M. at the Sherman & Jackson Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, Patrick’s family has requested that donations in his memory be made to the Philip Hulitar Hospice Center, 1085 North main St., Providence, RI 02904-5719.
To send the Carroll family a message of condolence, please visit www.shermanjackson.com
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