Max Joseph Kreiger III, of Westfield, entered eternal rest peacefully at home on the sunny summer afternoon of August 27, 2026. Born December 4, 1941 in Springfield, Massachusetts to Max Joseph Kreiger, Jr. and Helen Elizabeth Kreiger (née Serafino), Max was raised on Savoy Avenue in Springfield’s historic Hungry Hill neighborhood. Many who knew him affectionately called him “Brud,” after the German Bruder (“brother”), to distinguish three generations of Maxes from one another, and what began as a family sobriquet quickly grew into a lifelong nickname which he cherished. Max attended Liberty Elementary, Van Sickle Junior High, and Springfield Technical High School, graduating in 1959. A United States Veteran, Max served his country as a First Lieutenant in the Army National Guard during the Vietnam War from 1963 until he was Honorably Discharged in 1975.
For over 50 years, Max was a respected community member and hardworking businessman in the Greater Springfield area; driven by a lifelong love of cars, he proudly worked as an auto mechanic, service manager, and owner/operator at various establishments. Throughout his extensive career, Max carried a sterling reputation for outstanding customer service and humility of spirit. At 24, Max worked as a stock clerk for West Springfield Auto Parts, then as manager for Midas on Memorial Drive in Chicopee. In 1991, he received his Master Automobile Technician certification and, throughout the 1990s, was President of Union Auto Parts, Inc., a complete machine shop service partnered with Bumper to Bumper on Union Street in West Springfield. In the 2000s, he became service manager and master mechanic of Starzic's Service Station, a Parts Plus Car Care Center, on Memorial Ave in West Springfield. After “retiring” in the mid-2010s, Max continued to assist local friends and businessmen for several more years, including at Westfield Auto & Truck Center, where he answered calls and scheduled appointments for customers.
A devout Roman Catholic, Max lived his life in the service of the Lord. As a child, he was a communicant of Our Lady of Hope Catholic Church in Springfield; with his daughter, he attended Ste. Rose de Lima Catholic Church in Chicopee; in his later life, he was a faithful parishioner of St. Peter and St. Casimir Catholic Church in Westfield. An honest-to-goodness Good Samaritan, Max valued human connection and treated each person he knew—family, friend, neighbor, and customer—with respect, kindness, patience, and generosity. Max often volunteered his time to neighbors in need, driving them to appointments, donating food, or simply checking in with a hello and a joke. Max was also a member of American Legion Post 124 in Westfield, assisting fellow veterans by upholding the Legion’s mission and values, including the promotion of peace and good will on Earth and ensuring freedom and justice through mutual helpfulness.
Max was happiest when spending time with family at his parents’ lake house in Holland, Massachusetts, where he could be found driving the family speedboat, fishing from the dock, swimming, grilling, playing badminton, or, when the mood struck him, putting everyone to shame with his exceptional water skiing. He was an prolific reader, often reading two or three books at once, and a fan of doo-wop music. He loved to reminisce about his days growing up in Hungry Hill and the “trouble” he and his friends would cause from Newbury Street to Savoy Avenue. An avid competitive auto racing fan, Max often traveled throughout New England and across the East Coast, from the Dover Downs to Daytona Beach, to attend stock car races. He enjoyed taking his daughter to Riverside Park Speedway in Agawam for local races, as well. He never missed a televised NASCAR race, but if you asked him who he hoped would win, he’d wave his hand and say, “I don’t care. I’m just watching for fun.”
Max truly never had a bad day. Through all of life’s moments, he maintained a positive attitude and sunny outlook on life. He understood that life went on no matter how you felt and, despite the bad, you just had to keep going. He was never without a story, a joke, or a quick-witted response, and his personality alone drew folks to him. Whether he liked it or not, everyone knew his name; he couldn’t enter a building in town without at least one person greeting him with a, “Heya, Max!” A blessing to all who knew him, Max will be deeply, eternally missed and loved, and his memory cherished forever.
Max is survived by his beloved daughter, Shelby Elizabeth Kreiger, in whom he instilled his deep devotion to family, his care and respect for others, and his hard work ethic. He is also survived by his loving sisters, Joanne Marie Meyer of Westfield and Janet Mary Freeman of Springfield. Max also leaves his stepchildren, countless nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, cousins, and so many friends, community members, and folks near and far who are blessed beyond measure to have known him. Max was predeceased by his incredible parents, Max Jr. (2003) and Helen (2006), his brother, David (1955), and his lifelong friends, William “Billy” Dutko (1984), Leo J. Labonte, Jr. (2005), and R. Bruce Fitzgerald (2022).
A visitation will be held on the morning of the funeral, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026 from 9:00-10:30 AM at the Grise Funeral Home, 280 Springfield St, Chicopee followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St Rose de Lima Church at 11:00 AM. Burial will take place in St Michael’s Cemetery. For online condolences, please visit www.GriseFH.com.