John  L . “Jackie” Woods, Jr. – 75, of North Reading and formerly of Charlestown, died Sunday, September 24, 2017, after a lengthy illness. He was the loving husband of the late Laura (Golden) Woods.

Born in Charlestown, MA on July 24, 1942, he was the son of the late John L., Sr. and Ruth (Joyce) Woods. He was a resident of North Reading for the past 63 years.

Jackie loved his family dearly. He was a dedicated father, grandfather, brother and uncle. He enjoyed spending many afternoons with his brothers and nephew Michael, watching the Patriots.

Family members include his loving children, Erika Cunningham and her husband Scott of North Andover and John L. Woods, III of Newton; brothers, Bill and Daniel Woods, the late Paul, Michael and Tom Woods; sisters, Marsha Pierce, Kathleen Roberts and the late Ruthanne Lucci; eight grandchildren, John, Ryan, Mariah, Rhiannon and Savannah Woods, Skylah, Sierra and Sage Cunningham; and many nieces and nephews.

Graveside service will be held in Riverside Cemetery in North Reading on Thursday, September 28 at 10 AM. There will be no calling hours. Memorial donations may be made in his memory to the American Cancer Society, 30 Speen Street, Framingham, MA 01701. Arrangements are by Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Joyce M. (Sewell) Catanzaro -78, resident of Hudson, New Hampshire, died at the Lahey Medical Center Hospital in Burlington, on Saturday, September 16, 2017.

Born in Baltimore, MD, on March 25, 1939, she was the daughter of the late Cliffton and Lillian Sewell. She was a resident of Hudson, NH for the past 12 years and a former resident of North Reading.

Joyce worked for several manufacturing companies over the years, including supervisor at Inforex, Inc., followed by many years working for home health care providers. In her latest role ran the Beaverbrook Inn where she provided loving care for elderly residents.  Joyce was involved in nursing home ministries with her husband, Joe, weekly visits to share the Word of God and music and she especially enjoyed baking and bringing in goodies and handcrafted items to the residents.

Joyce was the loving wife of the late Joseph R. Catanzaro and loving mother of 7 children – 4 sons Joseph Catanzaro, Richard Catanzaro and his wife Maria, John Catanzaro and his wife Bronwyn and Christopher Catanzaro and his wife Beverly; 3 daughters Sandra Blanchet and her husband Gary, Shirley Catanzaro, Linda Benoit and her husband Arthur.   Joyce was blessed with13 grandchildren Sharon, Stephen, Sarah, Jennifer, AJ, Nicole, Tanya, Matthew, Brittany, Jory, Morgan, Krystal and Lilly and 15 great grandchildren, Jacob, Joey, Emily, Rylie, Ariana, Tyrone, Janelle, Jayden, Aahliyha, Jory, Gianna, Cyrus, Ania, Mason and Carter. Joyce will be remembered for her sweet and caring nature.  She was a kind and loving spirit, non-judgmental, had room in her heart for everyone.  She was thankful and grateful for her family and all she had, making the best of every day.  She was beautiful inside and out.

Funeral Service at the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Thursday, September 21 at 11 AM. Calling hours at the funeral home on Wednesday, September 20 from 5 to 8 PM. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery in North Reading. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to the American Red Cross, to help recent victims of hurricane devastation in Texas and Florida.       www.croswellfunerahome.com

Paul A. Vallee, Sr. – 75, of North Reading, died Sunday, September 10, 2017. He was a retired Officer of the Reading Police Department. Calling hours will be held at the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow St., NORTH READING on Thursday morning, September 14 from 7:30 AM to 9 AM, followed by a 10 AM Funeral Mass at St. Patrick Church, 71 Central St., Stoneham, MA. Burial will be in St. Patrick Cemetery in Stoneham. www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Virginia  M. (Reynolds) Fitzmeyer-90, of North Reading, died Saturday, September 9, 2017 at Care One  in Wilmington. She was the loving wife of 33 years to the late Paul H. Fitzmeyer.

Born in Winthrop, MA on February 15, 1927. She was the daughter of the late Francis and Helen (Lomasney) Reynolds of Winthrop. Virginia was raised in Beachmont and was a graduate of Immaculate Conception High School, Class of 1944.

She worked for twenty years as a Secretary for North Reading Public Works Department. She has been a resident of North Reading for over sixty years and a member of St. Theresa’s Church. She was a member of St. Theresa’s Women’s Guild, North Reading Garden Club, North Reading Town Hall Retirees Breakfast Club and her friends Bridge Club.

Virginia was always gentle, kind, generous and she loved reading (8 to 10 books a week). She had wonderful lifelong friends, she enjoyed gardening, traveling, swimming and loved playing bridge.

Family members include her loving son, Paul M. Fitzmeyer and his wife Kathleen of Haverhill; daughters, Pamela M. (Fitzmeyer) Dickey and her husband Lee of Dracut and Susan (Fitzmeyer) Bearor and her husband Karl of Deering, NH; her sister Ruth (Reynolds) Dame of Cold Spring Harbor, NY; grandmother of eight, Jaclyn and her husband David, Andrea and her husband Jonathan, David, Linda and her husband Jeremiah, Elizabeth, Kirsten, Ellen and Emily; great grandmother of four, Norah, Paige, Eliza and Brynn.

Her funeral will be held from the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Wednesday, September 13 at 9 AM, followed by a 10:30 AM Funeral Mass at St. Theresa’s Church, 63 Winter St., (Rt. 62), North Reading. Calling hours will be held prior to the Funeral on Wednesday from 9 to 10 AM. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery in North Reading. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to the charity of one’s choice. www.croswellfuneralhome.com

Dennis  F. Maher  72, of Wilmington and formerly of North Reading, died on Friday, September 1. He was a retired North Reading Police Department Sergeant.

Born in Boston, MA, he was the son of the late Dennis and Dorothy (Lehane) Maher. He was a graduate of Medford High School and he received his Bachelor’s Degree from New Hampshire College. Dennis was a member of the National Guard and he served on the North Reading Police Department from 1969 to 1994.

Dennis has been a resident of Wilmington for the past 5 years and a former resident of North Reading for 34 years. He has been a member of St. Theresa’s Church for many years.

Dennis will be remembered as a true gentleman, always caring, kind and compassionate. He enjoyed spending time with family and friends. The world was a better place with him in it.

Family members include his loving wife of 48 years, Kathy (Hingley) Maher; daughters, Jennifer Carpinella and her husband David, Kimberly Maher-Stamegna and her husband Don and Alison O’Brien and her husband Mical; his cherished sister, Lorraine Sheehan and her husband John; sister-in-law, Joan Janis and her husband Michael; 9 grandchildren, Timothy, Ashley, Austin, Jacob, Christian, Matthew, Sean, Keira and Kaiden.

His funeral will be held from the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Thursday, September 7 at 9:15 AM, followed by a 10:30 AM Funeral Mass at St. Theresa’s Church, 63 Winter St. (Rt. 62), North Reading. Calling hours will be held at the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow Street, North Reading on Wednesday, September 6 from 4 to 8 PM. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery in North Reading. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made in his memory to North Reading Dollars for Scholars, P.O. Box 529, North Reading, MA 01864.  www.croswellfuneralhome.com