…Merchant Marine during WW2; 87
TEWKSBURY - Joseph Raoul Letarte, age 87, died peacefully on Saturday morning, January 31, at the Kaplan Family Hospice in Danvers, after a lengthy illness.
He was born in Biddeford, Maine, on January 7, 1928, one of six children of the late J.L. Maurice Letarte and M. Adeline (Perreault) Letarte, and was the last surviving member of his family.
He was raised in Biddeford, and worked the cotton Mills of Biddeford as a Sorter.
Both during and at the close of WW2, he served in the military transport convoys across the North Atlantic.
He relocated to South Boston in 1980, and settled into retirement in Tewksbury in 1990, most recently as a member of the Carnation Drive housing complex.
He was described as an avid fan of all of Boston’s professional sports teams.
Joe was the brother of the late Therese (Letarte) Petrin, Marie Rose (Letarte) Gendron, Robert Letarte, Fernand Letarte, Marcel Letarte, and leaves several nieces and nephews.
A Memorial Visiting hour will be held Saturday, February 7, from 1:00 until 2:00 p.m. in the Tewksbury Funeral Home, corner of 1 Dewey and 975 Main Sts. (Rte. 38) TEWKSBURY CENTER, Ph. (800 in MA or 978) 851 2950. A Prayer Service will follow on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. in the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorials to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memorial Program, 501 St. Jude Pl., Memphis, TN 38105-1942 or visit www.stjude.org tewksburyfuneralhome.com