Jean Antonetta (Petroni) DiPrima, of Saugus, MA, formerly of Medford, and of the North End of Boston, passed away Tuesday, May 12, 2020, one month shy of her 80th birthday. Jean was a dedicated wife to James J. DiPrima, her husband of nearly 57 years, and to her family. Jean grew up in the North End of Boston where she maintained strong connections to the many friends from the neighborhood and from Girls High School, which she attended. The North End is where she met Jim DiPrima, and they married in June of 1963. They raised two children, Philip and Gina DiPrima (Abey). They spent most of their lives in Medford, before Jim and Jean moved to Saugus.
She was a humble woman, yet she possessed an inner strength. She asked for little but gave a lot. She was a generous and caring person who put the needs of others before her own. Jean was a lunch mother in the Medford Public Elementary School system for several years. She demonstrated a special gift for connecting with children. She doted on her 4 grandchildren who were the light of her life. She enjoyed her time volunteering as a greeter at the Museum of Fine Arts of Boston. She sang in the choir of Saint Raphael’s Church of Medford for a time, and was a proud Italian-American, participating in the Dante Alighieri Society and the Sons of Italy. She loved traveling to Italy and to California. One of her favorite trips was visiting the home of her father in Abruzzo, Italy.
Jean was nearly always by Jim’s side, even in death. They will be buried together in a double ceremony at Holy Cross Cemetery in Malden.
Jean leaves behind family members Philip, her son, of North Reading, formerly of Medford, daughter-in-law Kimberly (Pulpi), daughter, Gina DiPrima of California, son-in-law Alex Abey, and beloved grandchildren Ava, William, Ella and Olivia, and beloved sister Esther (Petroni) Santoro and family.
Jean's services will be private. A celebration of life will be celebrated at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent in James name to the charity of one’s choice or to Jim and Jean's gift-giving GoFundMe account https://www.gofundme.com/f/james-and-jean-diprima-memorial.