Joseph A. De Jesus

De Jesus, Joseph A.
Passed away on June 4th, 2011. Joe was born December 11, 1928 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. As a teenager he moved to New York City. He then attended the University of Illinois. After that he Volunteered for the Illinois National Guard and then volunteered for the Paratroopers with the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division. He obtained the rank of Sargent First Class during the Korean War. He was an amateur boxer and participated in 3 Golden Gloves Championships between 1949 and 1951. On retiring from the service he went back to NYC and joined the U.S. Postal Service. In 1966 he was transferred to the Tempe Post Office. He, his wife Dorothy, and two young sons, Andrew & Matthew, moved to Arizona. Joe became the President of The American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO Tempe Local. He also was very active with The American Legion, Post #2 in Tempe and was Commander in 1970. Joe was a very hard working person and held different part-time jobs until his final months. He was a taxi driver in NYC, bartender, cashier and customer service at the Arizona Cardinals and ASU Athletics, which he like the best. He graduated in 1978 from Mesa Community College and received his AA Degree. He also belonged to the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Joe leaves behind his loving wife, Dorothy, being married for over 55 years, two sons Andrew Joseph and Matthew Stephen, and 8 grandchildren; Benjamin, Nicholas, Logan, Jacob, Caleb, Zachary, Sarah, and Hannah. Memorial services will be held on Wednesday the 8th of June at Noon at the Monte Vista Nazarene Church 3313 N. 40th St Phx. Graveside services with be at the VA Memorial Cemetery, 23029 N Cave Creek Rd., Phx following at 2:00