Andrew J. Tiernan, Jr., 92, of Mattapoisett died Saturday January 28, 2012 at Brandon Woods of New Bedford after a brief illness. He was the husband of Irene E. (Burgess) Tiernan; they had been married for 65 years.
Born in Wareham, the son of the late Andrew J. and Edith (Leggett) Tiernan, he lived in New Bedford for many years before moving to Mattapoisett 38 years ago.
He was a communicant of St. Anthony's Church.
Mr. Tiernan was formerly employed as a telephone installer and repairman for the New England Telephone Company for 37 years until his retirement.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army and participated in the Battles of Northern France, the Rhineland, and Central Europe, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. He was a member of the Mattapoisett Lions Club, the American Legion Florence Eastman Post 280, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Andrews-Dahill Post 1531. He was a Past President of the Southern Mass. Telephone Pioneers. For many years he performed volunteer telephone work for sight-impaired area residents.
Survivors include his wife; two children, Carol L. White of Mattapoisett and Paul G. Tiernan of New Bedford; his siblings, Raymond Tiernan and Muriel Smith, both of Wareham, and Margaret Svendsen of New Hampshire; three grandchildren, Christopher G. White, Erin Ptaszenski and her husband Steven, and Karin Tiernan; three great-grandchildren, Andrew, Ryan, and Leah; and nieces and nephews.
He was the grandfather of the late Colleen and Andrew Tiernan, father-in-law of the late Kathleen Tiernan, and brother of the late Frederick Tiernan.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday at 9:30 AM at St. Anthony's Church. Burial will follow in St. Anthony's Cemetery. Visiting hours will be on Monday from 4-7 PM at the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd., Route 6, Mattapoisett. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.