Joseph Francis McPartland Jr.

1926 - 2020

Joseph Francis McPartland Jr.

Tenafly - Joseph Francis McPartland Jr (aka "Pop"), aged 93, went peacefully to his heavenly reward at 9:35 AM on Monday March 23 in Englewood Hospital. He was pre-deceased by his first wife who bore him nine sons, Alyce Elizabeth McPartland nee Reddington. He is survived by his second wife, Margaret Veronica McPartland nee Scanlon. He was born in the Bronx on May 15, 1926 to Cecilia McPartland nee Lawton and Joseph Francis McPartland Sr. who have pre-deceased him. He lived most of his life in Bergenfield, Norwood and Tenafly. He was pre-deceased by two brothers, Francis Xavier and Ignatius Maurice, the latter was ordained into the Carmelite Priesthood as Fr Guy. He was pre-deceased by his daughter-in-law, Nancy, who was married to James. Joe is survived by his nine sons, Joseph III (Gigi), John (Mary), Guy (Rose), Brian (Carin), Steven (Joyce), James, Liam (Lisa), Brendan (Kathleen) and Denis (Corinna), step-son, Andrew Barnett, 21 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. He graduated from St. John the Evangelist Grammar School in Bergenfield. He starred as a football player for Vince Lombardi at St. Cecilia High School, when they went undefeated for 3 straight years and won a mythical national championship. He was class valedictorian and a varsity baseball player. He enlisted in the Navy upon graduation in 1944. He was accepted into the V-12 Navy Officer Training program. As part of that training, he was sent to Dartmouth School of Engineering and graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in electrical engineering. It took him just 2 years to complete the 4 year curriculum, whereupon he accepted a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the USMC. In the fall of 1946, he was recruited by Vince Lombardi (his old HS coach was now a coach at West Point) to play football. So he joined the Army! Giving him the rare distinction of having served in all 3 branches - Army, Navy and Marines. An injury ended his football career at West Point. After his honorable discharge, he served as an Undercover Agent for the Treasury Department. He left that dangerous work when he became a father. He was extremely successful in his career as a technical writer for EC&M magazine, where he rose to the rank of Editorial Director. He later founded, owned and operated his own magazine, Electrical Design and Installation He authored 26 books on various electrical systems and codes. He was considered to be the country's leading expert on the National Electric Code. He was an outstanding public speaker who would lead seminars on the Electrical Code all across the country, educating thousands of engineers, contractors, inspectors, and electricians. Gifted with a beautiful voice, he embarked upon his singing career after he retired. He ultimately released 6 albums of Irish, Scottish and Spiritual Songs and donated all of the albums' revenues to the retired Franciscan Sisters in Tenafly. Some of his recordings can be found on You Tube. He was known to be a man of strong moral character, scrupulously following the letter and the spirit of the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. His sense of humor and ready smile endeared him to one and all. In light of the current health crisis, wakes and funerals are not allowed, so a Funeral Mass will be scheduled sometime in the future when the restriction is lifted. In lieu of flowers, Joe would like to see any donations be sent, in honor of his brother, Fr. Guy, to The Carmelites Office of Concern Food Pantry at St. Cecilia Church, 55 West Demarest Ave. Englewood, NJ 07631. Donate on-line http://officeofconcern.com/