Joseph P. Taffe, Jr., 75, of Dartmouth died Monday May 23, 2011, unexpectedly at home. He was the husband of Jean C. (Reedy) Taffe; they recently celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary.
Born in New Bedford , the son of the late Joseph P. and Agnes C. (Miller) Taffe, he lived in Dartmouth for over 40 years.
He was a communicant of St. Julie Billiart Church, where he had served as a Eucharistic minister, CCD instructor, and chairman of the Catholic Charities Appeal.
Mr. Taffe was formerly employed as an agent with the Internal Revenue Service for 30 years until his retirement. He had also been an accounting instructor at UMass Dartmouth.
He graduated from New Bedford Textile Institute with highest honors, and had also served in the U.S. Army.
Mr. Taffe was a member of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick. He was awarded the Special Achievement Award by the IRS in 1988.
Survivors include his wife; three sons, Patrick Taffe of Dartmouth, Michael Taffe of New Bedford, and Christopher Taffe and his wife Wendy of Roslindale; a sister, Mary Bolton of New Bedford; three grandchildren who were the loves of his life, Ryan, Aidan, and Eleanor; three nephews, Joseph Bolton and his wife Zita, John Bolton and his wife Colleen, and Daniel Bolton; and six great-nieces and nephews, Joseph, Thomas, Matthew, Dominic, Megan and Ashley.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Thursday at 10 AM in St. Julie Billiart Church. Burial will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery. Visiting hours will be on Wednesday 5-8 PM in the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals, 495 Park St., New Bedford. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.