Raymond R. Pires, Sr., 77, of Fairhaven died Sunday February 19, 2012 surrounded by his loving family. He was the husband of Julia A. (Costa) Pires; they were married for 56 years.
Born in New Bedford, the son of the late Joseph and Mary (Torres) Pires, he lived in New Bedford before moving to Fairhaven 20 years ago.
He was a communicant of St. Lawrence Church.
Mr. Pires was formerly employed as a machine operator at Revere Copper & Brass until his retirement.
Raymond was an avid sports fan, coaching CYO basketball in his younger years and enjoyed rooting for all the Boston teams in his later years.
He looked forward to his monthly trip to Foxwoods, but his greatest joy was being surrounded by his family. He worked hard over the years to give them the best life possible. Raymond will always be remembered as a loving and devoted husband, father and grandfather.
Survivors include his wife; six children, Dolores Pastie and her husband Kenneth of Rochester, Raymond Pires and his wife Barbara, Susan Pires, Stephen Pires and his wife Mary Lou, and Jennifer Levasseur and her husband Peter, all of New Bedford, and Christopher Pires and his wife Michelle of Acushnet; his sister, Dorothy DeSouza of Dartmouth; twelve grandchildren, James, Matthew, and Jonathan Gagnon, Melissa Pimentel, Brianna Pires, Sarah Griffith, Sean and Kevin Pires, Emilie and Oliver Pires, and Ella and Drew Levasseur; three great-grandchildren, Hailey Gagnon, Sophia Hardin, and Aubrey Griffith; and nieces and nephews.
He was the brother of the late Joseph Pires.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Thursday at 10 AM at St. Lawrence Church. Burial will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery. Visiting hours will be on Wednesday from 4-7 PM at the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals, 495 Park St., New Bedford. Remembrances may be made to St. Lawrence Church St. Vincent dePaul Society 110 Summer St. New Bedford, MA 02740. For on-line guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.