Dante E. DeLellis

Dante Edward DeLellis of North Andover, MA, born May 13, 1928 (on Mother's Day), died peacefully amongst family, on January 21, 2025, at Edgewood LifeCare Community in North Andover, MA, having led a long, full, and fruitful 96+ years of life.
Dante was born in Lawrence, MA, to Albert and Giovanna DeLellis who braved the journey to America from Italy and gave their son an education and a shot at the American dream, which he greatly fulfilled for him and his family. He is survived by his loving wife of 68 years, Anna Marie Fargnoli, also of Lawrence, MA, and whose parents braved the identical journey from Italy. In a twist of fate, both sets of parents were married in the same church, at the same time, not knowing that their two future children would ultimately marry and become life partners. Dante is also survived by his daughters, Laura DeLellis Lorimer and her husband, Dan of Franklin, MI, Susan Valpey and her husband John, of Concord, MA, and Mary Beth Masterson and husband John of North Andover, MA, and is the proud grandfather of seven grandchildren: Grant, Reed and Wade Lorimer, Jillian and Chadwick Valpey, and Connor and Cole Masterson.
A World War II veteran, Dante served in the U.S. Navy and later earned his degree in electrical engineering at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. He spent the majority of his career at AT&T, primarily at Western Electric in North Andover, MA, as an electrical engineer. He later put his natural teaching abilities to work as an electronics teacher at Wakefield Vocational Technical High School before retiring fully. His passion for engineering and love for tinkering and building things, influenced his hobbies and he spent well into his retirement years fixing household appliances, designing and building woodworking crafts for his wife's holiday creations, and working on the home "honey-do list." He also used his expertise in engineering to help his children with their school experiments and projects, and was always there to share his "know how" and offer his advice on the best way to tackle a problem or fix something that's broken. He enjoyed fishing, sailing, tennis, skiing, woodworking, camping and gardening and he taught and shared these experiences with his three daughters along with anyone else who wanted to join, learn, and was willing to listen to his lectures. He was also a lover of cats and opened his heart and home to many a stray over the years, and was always patient, attentive and caring to them. They brought him much joy over his lifetime. The major lessons he taught his children from a young age, were to work hard, love family and community and embrace education. He led a loving, Christian life and we celebrate and thank him for all he has done for his family, friends and community. We are so fortunate to have had him for so long.
Family and friends are invited to attend calling hours on Thursday, January 23, 2025, from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Cataudella Funeral Home, 126 Pleasant Valley Street in Methuen. A funeral Mass will take place on Friday, January 24, 2025, at 10:00 am at St. Michael Parish, 196 Main Street, North Andover. A burial will follow in Saint Mary Immaculate Conception Cemetery, Lawrence, MA. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Dante's memory to the Alzheimer's Association, https://act.alz.org/ or The Cat Connection, Brighton, MA https://thecatconnection.org.