John O. Garrity

1936 - 2022

John O. "Jack" Garrity, age 86 of Bourne, passed away on 11/12/22 at home. Born in Pittsfield, son of the late John Phillip Garrity and AnnaMae (Auger) Garrity, his father passed away when he was 14 months old. His mother married Roderick W. Pidgeon when he was 5 but it wasn't until his 50's that he was adopted by Mr. Pidgeon.

Jack loved being outdoors, travel, music, and reading. His love of the outdoors led him to Boy Scout Troop 19 where he rose to the rank of Eagle Scout which is the highest rank in Boy Scouts. His love of travel took him to California and the Boy Scout National Jamboree. He spent the summer at Camp Eagle as a waterfront director and it was there that he met Jack and Phil who would become lifelong friends.

Jack graduated from Pittsfield High School as Class President in 1955 and went on to North Adams State College to continue his education. It was there that he was introduced to Pat by a mutual friend.

Jack and Pat were married on October 12, 1957.

They lived in North Adams and then moved to Pittsfield where he took a position as a lab technician at Berkshire Medical Center while he worked toward his National Certification as a Medical Technologist. He was the first student to graduate from the BMC program and became certified as a Registered Medical Technologist.

With certification in hand, he moved to Shrewsbury and began to work at Worcester Memorial Hospital as the manager of the blood bank, a position he held for 35 years until his retirement.

He and Pat raised their two children in Shrewsbury where they spend many hours outdoors or traveling to many new and exciting places. It was then that they set a goal for themselves to visit all 50 states, which they accomplished in 2011 when they took a cruise to Alaska. A trip through Panama Canal in 2013 was a bonus.

Bulldogs were an important part of the family. Membership in the Bulldog Club of New England and Bulldog Club of America led to raising, showing, and rescuing bulldogs for many years. He was especially proud of his dog Bear who won the National Bulldog Championship defeating 300 dogs to accomplish this feat.

Living so close to Boston allowed the family to see many Broadway musicals including The King and I with Yul Brynner.

Jack retired in 1999 and he and Pat moved to Bourne in 2001 where they had many new places to explore. They enjoyed the many new varieties of birds, especially osprey which they watched from their arrival in the spring through the raising of the offspring to their eventual return to the south in the fall. Their love of music continued with season tickets to College Light Opera in Falmouth. Reading was a lifelong love and it wasn't unusual to find him reading more than one book at a time. Thank goodness for the Bourne Public Library. Mornings would find him having a coffee and doing the daily crossword puzzle.

He and Pat became parishioners at St. John the Evangelist Church in Pocasset and took part in many activities there including St Vincent de Paul where he served as president and treasurer. He also served as a Eucharist minister, lector, and usher. Jack was awarded the Marian Medal by the Fall River diocese for his dedication and service to the church.

He loved his family, his church, and his friends and will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

In addition to his wife, he leaves his daughter Jean Garrity of Falmouth, granddaughters; Amber Ingram and Sonja Leber of Newport News, VA, and two great-granddaughters Renate Garrity and Layla Ingram. He was the father of the late John P. "Jack" Garrity and brother of the late Jean Ann Garrity.

A Funeral Mass will be held at St. John of the Evangelist Parish, 841 Shore Rd., Pocasset, MA on Monday, November 21, at 10AM with Burial in Pocasset Cemetery to follow.

Donations in memory of Jack may be made to St Vincent de Paul Society at St John the Evangelist Church, 841 Shore Rd., Pocasset MA 02559

For online tributes, please visit www.nickersonbourne.com