Joseph Vincent "Joe" Mahoney 84, of North Andover, MA passed away peacefully on Saturday, April 21, 2012 at the Holy Family Hospital in Methuen surrounded by his loving family.
Born in Lawrence, on December 27, 1927, son of the late Vincent A. and Mary B.(Coughlan) Mahoney, Joe graduated from St. Augustine Grammar School, Central Catholic High School Class of 1945, attended Maryknoll Seminary in NY from 1945-1948, he then entered Merrimack College and was a member of the 1st graduating Class of 1951. Following college, Joe served as a 1st Lt. in the US Army for three years. Upon discharge in 1954, he joined the Eagle-Tribune news room and advanced from reporter to Managing Editor. He retired after 18 years.
In 1974, he and Andrew Coburn published - Today in Greater Lawrence - a brief but choice weekly newspaper. Each issue featured a full, front-page photo by the late, celebrated, photographer Richard Graber. The desire to be a lawyer proved too strong to resist and Joe entered Suffolk University Law School. While studying there, he worked fulltime as a copy editor at the Boston Globe. In 1976, Joe passed the bar and associated with his friend, Victor Hatem, in the law firm of Hatem & Mahoney. He was a member of the Lawrence Bar Association and the Massachusetts Bar Association. With his journalistic and legal background, he taught a course called 'Journalism and the Law' at Northeastern University in Boston. Joe was a generous man who offered his time and talents to various endeavors. He volunteered to fly for Angel Flight - an organization that offers transportation to people whose medical problems make it necessary for them to travel for diagnosis or repeated treatment. He was a member of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.
His community service included working with Elder Services of Lawrence and the Red Cross as a Board member. In North Andover, Joe was Chairman of the North Andover Planning Board from 1990-1999. A parishioner of St. Michael Church in North Andover, he was a lector for many years.
Joe was a co-founder of Chanticleer Shores Association on Lake Winnipesaukee in Gilford, N.H. where he maintained a home. He was an avid hiker, skier and sailor. He was known as "Uncle Joe" to all the young ones in the area and will be remembered as showing no mercy while playing 45's with his friends.
Survivors include his brother, Rev. Maurice J. Mahoney O.S.A. of
Nagasaki, Japan, his sister, Nancy Duddy of Summerfield, FL, his
sister-in-law Tina M. Mahoney of Haverhill, MA, his niece, Kathleen
M. Mahoney of Jamaica Plain, MA, his nephews, Daniel V. Mahoney of
Methuen, MA, James J. Mahoney and his partner Jon Pate of Boston, MA,
Atty. John E. Mahoney, his wife Danja and his grandnieces: Bridget and
Julie Mahoney of Andover, MA.
Besides his parents, he was predeceased by his sisters: Julie Mahoney,
Sr. Marie Gabriel, S.N.D., Sr. Julie Vincent, S.N.D. and by his
brother Trooper Edward A. (Buz) Mahoney, MSP.
Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to call on Monday, April 30th, 2012 from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the John Breen Memorial Funeral Home, Inc., 35 Merrimack Street, North Andover, Massachusetts. His funeral mass will be celebrated on Tuesday, May 1st, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. in Saint Michaels Church in North Andover, MA. Relatives and friends are invited to meet directly at the Church and committal services will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Sisters of Notre Dame, 30 Jeffrey's Neck Rd., Ipswich, MA 01938 or Augustinian Missions Office, 214 Ashwood Rd., P.O. Box 340, Villanova, PA 19085.
To send a message of condolence to the family, please view the obituary at www.breenfuneralhome.com.