John J Carpenter Jr. died unexpectedly in Harbor City, California on October 1st. He was 66. Born in Taunton, he was the son of the late John J Carpenter Sr. He is survived by his mother Helen (Biss) Carpenter and his sister Katherine both of Raynham MA. as well as several cousins William (Bill), Wayne and Warren Biss.
Raised and educated in Raynham, John proudly represented Pleasant St. School as the 8th grade winner in "Science Countdown" in 1960 sponsored by Lowell Technological Institute and seen on WBZ TV. John was a 1964 Graduate of Bridgewater Raynham Regional High school. He attended Northeastern University in Boston and Southeastern Massachusetts University in Dartmouth MA. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. John later earned the title of Licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in the state of California.
John started his very diverse career working for Taunton Oxygen in Taunton, MA. Subsequently, he held positions with Industrial Stainless Steel of Cambridge, MA as a metallurgist, Jersey Testing labs and the former Tower Iron Works of Seekonk, MA as a welding inspector. He also worked at Brown and Root of Houston Texas and Allied Signal formally Garrett Air Research of Torrance California as a field inspector. For the last 21 years John was employed by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. He was a senior mechanical engineer in the field inspection unit. He transferred to the manufacturing services unit where he provided quality control and inspection support at the La Verne machine shop and fabrication facilities.
John was a very kind and giving person who loved to create solutions and solve technical problems for others. He was a passionate horticulturist and would deliver his award winning tomatoes to his coworkers. He was an avid reader of current events and strived to expand his knowledge on technical subjects. He also enjoyed welding, fabrication and chemistry. John was also very well respected in many technical fields including but not limited to industrial gasses, cryogenics and metallurgy.
Private services will be handled by O'Keefe - Wade Funeral home of Taunton, MA. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the charity of your choice.