Joseph Patrick Connors

Joseph Patrick Connors was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

Joseph was born on October 26, 1956 at Bronx Union Hospital in New York, New York. His parents Joseph and Josephine (Joyce) Connors raised him in Bronx and Queens. He was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve him well throughout his life.

Growing up in the Connors household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, Joseph was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and he was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. Joseph was raised with two siblings, a younger brother, Daniel, and a younger sister, Kathleen. Joseph and his siblings may have had the typical rivalries while growing up but Joseph was always consistently loyal to his family.

As a young child, Joseph was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and never forced his way into games or other activities. Joseph developed a variety of interests, though, and the things he enjoyed doing he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. Joseph took part in football and was a Sea Cadet. In his spare time he liked building airplane models. However, what Joseph enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with his close friends.

While his teachers and even his friends generally thought of Joseph as being a serious person, he managed to have a pretty good time in high school as he made that critical transition from adolescence to adulthood. He graduated from Brooklyn Tech and Bayside High School in 1974. His favorite class in high school was history. Joseph was a very logical person who enjoyed learning about factual information. Using his exceptional memory, he was able to learn much through observation. Joseph always seemed to have a command of the facts and was able to make it seem as though he could easily master any problem that might be presented to him.

Always considered to be a solid friend, Joseph was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during his life. Since he disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw his own conclusions based on direct observation, Joseph was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew him. He was committed to his friends and valued the trust he placed in them. It was not uncommon for Joseph to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought him out for advice because he had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of his best friends were Paul and Doug Scalard. Later in life, he became friends with Barbara and Mike Dennis.

On October 5, 1996 Joseph exchanged wedding vows with Darlene Hungerford at the Oakeside Center of Bloomfield, New Jersey. Compassionate and devoted to Darlene, Joseph held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. He took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it his total commitment. He was a source of strength to Darlene and using his gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, he worked hard to make his new family happy.

Joseph brought the same traditional values in his marriage to bear on how he raised his children. He was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in his dealings. He would always listen carefully and think things through before he acted, even when it was an adverse situation. Joseph was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. Joseph was blessed with two sons, Joseph and Michael.

Joseph was also a lover of dogs and cherished his pets. One of Joseph’s favorites was Lucy, a Beagle mix. They were best friends for 5 years.

Joseph greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. Joseph enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, Joseph was excellent at meeting deadlines. He was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. His primary occupation was as an IT Manager. He was employed for 30 years by ITT Sheraton and Caesars Entertainment. Most recently he worked for NV Taxi Cab Authority. Joseph worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

Joseph liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into his hobbies, where he was very methodical in how he organized his activities and categorized things. Since he enjoyed his private time, Joseph always tried to allocate a specific time to fulfill his passions. His favorite pursuits were helping his boys get the best coaching for tennis and baseball. Joseph was content to enjoy his passions alone but was also willing to share his interests with others.

Joseph found pleasure in sports. Being a person who was comfortable making win/lose decisions throughout life, he could appreciate that athletes made those types of decisions in sports. He applauded those who won, and he enjoyed the statistical data and sports facts and could find himself wrapped up in those details. Recreationally, he loved weight training and would watch his favorite sporting events whenever he got the opportunity. Tops on his list were baseball and tennis.

Joseph was a man of faith. He was a member St. Elizabeth for 14 years and Holy Spirit for 6 years. He was a sympathetic man who valued his beliefs and was willing to work tirelessly for them.

Joseph enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since he was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with Joseph appeared effortless. He enjoyed researching all of his options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where he traveled, Joseph always had a backup plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included Sydney, Australia, Turks and Caicos.

Joseph Patrick Connors passed away on September 10, 2018 at home after a sudden cardiac event. He is survived by his wife, Darlene; sons, Joseph and Michael; mother, Josephine; brother, Daniel; and sister, Kathleen. Services were held at Holy Spirit Catholic Church.

Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of Joseph Patrick Connors. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.