Richard P. Shea

Waltham – In the three and a half years since Dick Shea lost his Mary to cancer he missed her every day . . . their wedding anniversary was two weeks ago. And following a period of declining health he knew the reunion with Mary was getting close. You could say he died a happy man.

He was loved by his children and grandchildren. He enjoyed life's simple gifts. Fr. Ted Hesburgh who ran the University of Notre Dame for years said that "the most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother".

He must have had Dick Shea in mind.

So when the end did come for Richard P. Shea on Tuesday, June 28, 2016 at Brighton House tears were shed, smiles were shared and an era came to an end. He was 84.

Dick was born in Brighton on May 2, 1932, a son of the late William J. and Mary Edna (Fischer) Shea. He grew up in Watertown and after graduating from Watertown High School joined the United States Navy where he served for four years during the Korean War as an air controller.

He married Medford native Mary T. Rooney on June 16, 1956 in Saint Joseph's Church in Medford and soon after moved to Waltham where they raised their family. Dick and Mary were long active in their new parish, Saint Jude's, where Dick was an usher for as long as anyone can remember at the 4 o'clock Mass on Saturday.

After he got out of the service Dick went to work as an outside plant engineer for the New England Telephone and Telegraph Company and retired following a thirty-eight year career. During that time he went to Northeastern University in Boston where he earned his bachelor's degree.

As soon as his grandchildren started coming around he took on a new lease on life and a new nickname . . . "Bodie". Bodie loved helping take care of the kids with Mary. Wednesday nights were special . . . dinner with the grandchildren at one of several restaurants they frequented.

Dick also had a knack for knowing someone almost everywhere he went. He was affable, agreeable, kind and generous. He might best be remembered as the go to guy for almost anything the family needed . . . the words "what do you need me to do?" frequently led to a full time job driving to and from school functions, sporting events and medical appointments . . . and always with a calm, gentle and reassuring smile.

He was an avid reader and a dedicated golfer at the Fresh Pond Golf Course in Cambridge. Dick belonged to the Hibernians in Watertown where he could often be found playing pool and he bowled with the Saint Jude's bowling league.

Dick leaves his children, Paula M. LaCrosse and her husband, Stewart, of Waltham, Richard P. Shea, Jr., and his partner, Daniel Guarnaccia, of Winthrop and John W. Shea of Needham; his grandchildren, James S. LaCrosse and his wife, Jennifer, Michael J. LaCrosse, all of Framingham, Daniel J. LaCrosse of Waltham and Maeve F. and Luisa M. Shea, of Needham and his step-great-granddaughter, Morgan Davis.

He was also the father-in-law of the late Diane E. Shea and brother of the late William Shea.

Family and friends will honor and remember Dick's life by gathering for calling hours in The Joyce Funeral Home, 245 Main Street (Rte. 20), Waltham on Friday, July 1st from 4 to 8 p.m. and again on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. before leaving in procession to Saint Jude Church, 147 Main Street, Waltham where his Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Burial will be in Grove Hill Cemetery, Waltham.

Memorial donations may be made to the Massachusetts General Hospital Transplant Center, 55 Fruit Street, White Building #517, Boston, MA 02114.