JOHN JOSEPH CRONIN

CRONIN, John Joseph, Jr. John Joseph Cronin Jr. was an intrepid adventurer, and he started young. When he was 16, he went out from his hometown of Leominster, Mass., on his Suzuki 250 for a little motorcycle ride with a friend. That little ride turned into a 200-mile trip west, including a couple of hours stopped at the New York border to wire up his broken headlight to comply with the law of the state of New York. Mr. Cronin's mother was wondering where he had gotten off to this time when she got a call from her sister in Modena, N.Y., saying the teenager had made a surprise appearance there with his friend. They spent the night and headed home the next day.

That same spirit was always whispering in his ear. In 1985, Mr. Cronin bicycled home to Massachusetts from Seattle. And this year, Mr. Cronin retired in June from his long-time profession as a teacher with plans to crisscross the country on his BMW motorcycle to far-flung destinations based mostly on where his friends lived. He did manage a few trips. But that's all. On Friday, Oct. 5, Mr. Cronin, 61, of Ghent, N.Y., was killed in Hillsdale, N.Y., when the motorcycle he was driving south on New York State Route 22 was hit by a northbound SUV turning left onto County Route 21, police said, according to published reports. He was thrown from his motorcycle and pronounced dead at the scene.

Mr. Cronin, a teacher, athlete, and loving father of three, was artistically and technically proficient in the physical arts and also had the intellectual reach of an academic, a rare combination. He could also work in the trenches.

His first job upon graduation from Leominster High School in 1975 was driving trailer dump trucks loaded with gravel to big projects in the state, such as the construction of Interstate 190 and the flood control dams on the Charles River. He did this until he tired of working amid whirling stone dust and road dirt and decided to enroll in college. Thus began his academic career. He earned a Bachelor's of Science in geography from Fitchburg State College and a Master's of Education in curriculum development in science from Washington State University. For a time, he studied in the University of Lowell's ABD Math and Science doctoral program, which he left before completing the degree to spend more time with his growing family.

His career in education took him from teaching science at Portsmouth High School in N.H., to Assabet Valley Collaborative High School in Marlborough, Mass., where he taught science and then became principal. He was a visiting lecturer at Fitchburg State College, then moved into the Waldorf school environment in Wilton, N.H., and Great Barrington, Mass. Finally he worked in Ghent, N.Y., at Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School for 12 years. He served at various times as high school chair or faculty chair. He taught geology, physics, astronomy, optics, and math. He also ran the wood shop and taught woodworking, instructing his students on how to make dovetail joint boxes, musical instruments, and boats. He dedicated his life to setting an example for his students, in and out of the classroom. A conversation with Mr. Cronin was always an edifying experience as well as a sheer delight as his wry and ironic sense of humor never failed to elicit that special bond of two who just shared a laugh.

He liked to just hop on his motorcycle and head out. He'd call ahead asking if a friend was home. If the answer were affirmative, well then he'd be right over even if the right over was a few hours away or a few days. With all that time on the road, he half-jokingly mused that he might just start a blog: Hamburger joints I like.

He was a runner with a six-minute mile, a bicyclist who embraced the century rides (100 miles), a skier who challenged himself on Tuckerman's Ravine, and a rock climber who slept hanging off the side of a very high formation. He participated in many triathlons as a member of a team that included his sister, Beverly Cronin, as swimmer, and a rotating cast of many of his athletic friends. They always came in first co-ed team. He also played drums, baked a perfect cheesecake, made a strong cup of coffee, black if you please, and remained calm when encountering bears on his long walks on the back roads of the Hudson River Valley.

He was born in Fitchburg, Mass., to Mary (Doucette) Cronin and John Joseph Cronin Sr. He attended Holy Family School in Fitchburg, transferring in the third grade to St. Leo's in Leominster. From there he went to Carter Junior High School, then Leominster High.

Besides his sister of Leominster, Mr. Cronin leaves three children, Jeremiah, twins Angelica and Mackenzie Cronin, nieces, nephews, cousins, and many best friends, and it was very many as he made all his friends feel as if they were his best friend.

Calling hours at the Silas F. Richardson and Son Funeral Home, 106 West St., LEOMINSTER, are Tuesday, October 16, from 4-7. Burial in St. Leo's Cemetery Wednesday morning, October 17, at 11.

www.richardsonfuneralhome.net