Joseph Anthony Mallon Jr.

Joseph Anthony Mallon, Jr. was born on June 12, 1921 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and passed away on December 7, 2018 in Portland, Oregon. Born to Joseph Anthony Mallon Sr. and Maria Josefa (Estevez - Navarro) Mallon.

Raised in Philadelphia until 1924 when the family moved to Cuba. In 1930, Joseph and his sister Eileen were sent back to Boarding School and their relatives in Philadelphia. Their parents followed in 1932. In 1940, the family moved to a ranch in Goldendale, Washington and in 1943 to the Gresham, Oregon area.

Joseph graduated High School in Goldendale, Washington where he played Football. In 1947, he married Shirley Ann Caspersen in Portland, Oregon. He graduated from the University of Portland in 1948, where he majored in History. He served in the United States Marine Corps from July 1943 until his honorable discharge in January of 1946. He achieved the rank of Corporal. During his time in the service, he saw combat duty (WWII) in Saipan, Tinian and Okinawa (Pacific Theater). He served in the Oregon National Guard from 1950 until his honorable discharge in 1981, and he achieved the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 4. Joseph worked for the United States Postal Service for the majority of his career. He retired in 1981.

When he turned 50 years of age, he started jogging and swimming on a daily basis, and he competed in both sports. In swimming, he was in the Top 10 in the nation and held world records for his age group. Besides countless running races, he ran a total of 14 marathons until he was in his 60’s. He qualified for the Boston Marathon. He kept a log of his running miles. Including daily workouts and races, he ran over 24,000 miles. Joseph was active in his community through involvement with the Oregon Road Runners, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), American Legion and the Knights of Columbus.

Joseph was preceded in death by his wife, Shirley Ann Mallon; son, Daniel “Butchie” Mallon; his parents and three siblings. He is survived by his children, MaryJo Spurgeon (Robert) of Springdale, WA, Patty Jean Hill (Ron) of Portland, OR, Carmela Johnson (Leighton) of Portland, OR, Diane Kleinberg of Springdale, WA and Joseph Daniel Mallon of Gresham, OR; grandchildren Rochelle Browning, Jacob Vinson, Meiling Huang and Chad Kleinberg; great grandchildren Jordan Browning, Gavin Browning, Jaden Vinson and Maverick Kleinberg; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

A Funeral Mass will be held on Wednesday, December 19 at 11 am at St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church (with viewing immediately prior to the service on Wednesday at St. Joseph the Worker at 10 am), with a 2 pm Committal Ceremony at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Gresham.