Joseph P. Mearls
...Retired from Tewksbury Hospital; Veteran; 86
TEWKSBURY- Joseph P. Mearls, age 86, a WWII Veteran, died peacefully at his home,
surrounded by family, on Veterans Day, Monday, November 12. He was the husband of the late
Ella J. (Frizzell) Mearls, who died in 1985.
He was born in Cambridge on March 12, 1921, one of seven children of the late William and Julia
(Driscoll) Mearls. He was raised in Winchester, but had lived in Tewksbury since 1951.
He served the US Army during WWII, under the command General George Patten in North
Africa, Sicily, and later, mainland Italy. He earned 4 Battle Stars during his military service.
He was employed as a heavy equipment operator for a number of local companies, worked at
Bethlehem Steel, and retired from the grounds crew at Tewksbury Hospital, where he had served
for over 12 years.
He was a communicant of St. Dorothy’s Church in Wilmington, and was described by his children
as having devoted his life to his wife and family.
He is survived by a son Daniel Mearls and his wife Terry of Pelham, NH; two daughters,
Elizabeth Poloian of Tewksbury, Judy Wing and her husband Mark of Dracut; a sister, Mary
O’Keefe of Arlington; nine grandchildren; seven great grandchildren; and many nieces and
nephews.
He was also father of the late Jeannette “Jan” Martin; and brother of the late John Mearls, Kay
Laughlin, Thomas, William, and Julia Mearls.
His Funeral Mass was celebrated at on Thursday, Nov. 15, at St. Dorothy’s Church in Wilmington. Burial followed at Tewksbury Cemetery. Memorials to the American
Cancer Society, 30 Speen St. Framingham, MA 01701, will be apprecieted.