James J. Pepe's Obituary
Methuen – James J. Pepe, 83 of Methuen, died Saturday, July 4, 2020 at the High Pointe House in Haverhill after a brief battle with lung and brain cancer. He also battled melanoma off and on from 1986 to 2000 and more recently, Alzheimer’s disease throughout the past decade.
Born and raised in Lawrence, he was the son of the late James P. Pepe and Josephine (Paolino) pepe. He graduated from Lawrence High School in 1954 and thereafter joined the U.S. Navy. In his early years, he built houses for the Colizzi Construction Company, owned by his brother-in-law and close friend, the late George A. Colizzi. He went on to work for the former Western Electric in North Andover, which eventually became AT&T and then Lucent Technologies until his retirement in 1994 after 35 years of service.
Always a very handy man, he could build or fix anything. During the 1980’s, he especially enjoyed spending summer vacations at North Hampton Beach with his wife and sons. In his later years, he enjoyed maintaining and repairing his pickup trucks, trimming trees and doing yardwork, building birdhouses and tending to his birdfeeders, and spending time at home with his family for the holidays and birthday parties. He also loved playing with and building toys for the family cat, Tiger.
James was the widower of Carol A. (Young) Pepe, with whom he enjoyed 47 years of marriage until her passing in 2005. He cared for her until the end through her 3 year battle with lung cancer. He will be deeply missed by his 3 sons, David J. Pepe and his wife, Dotti, of Methuen, James A. Pepe and Erik T. Pepe, both of Methuen; 1 grandson, Jeffrey Pepe of NH; several nieces and nephews; and was known as Papi to Charlotte, Camden, Victoria, Alexis, and Elizabeth. James was predeceased by his three sisters Rose Furnari, Eleanor J. Adams, and Gloria C. Colizzi; and his identical twin brother Frederick N. Pepe.
Family and friends will honor and celebrate James’ life by gathering for his graveside service at 11AM on Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at St. Mary/Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Lawrence. Guests are kindly asked to meet directly at the cemetery. Due to COVID-19 guidelines, face masks will be required at the graveside and social distancing must be followed. If you have a health or other underlying concern, please do not attend. James’ family will understand and respect your decision.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to Merrimack Valley Hospice, 360 Merrimack Street, Bldg. 9, Lawrence, MA 01843 or to the Alzheimer’s Association of Massachusetts, 309 Waverley Oaks Road, Waltham, MA 02452. To send an online condolence, please visit www.pollardfuneralhome.com. The Kenneth H. Pollard Funeral Home, 233 Lawrence Street, Methuen is honored to serve the Pepe family.
What’s your fondest memory of James?
What’s a lesson you learned from James?
Share a story where James' kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with James you’ll never forget.
How did James make you smile?
