Joe Palombo

Joe was a great guy and a good friend. He was a Selectman in the town of Kingston. He will be missed by many.
I am having a bad week. This will be the 4th wake in 8 days.

Joseph M. Palombo, former three-term Kingston Selectmen, dies at 66

Joseph M. Palombo, who served nine years on the Kingston Board of Selectmen, died on Tuesday, March 13, following a brief illness. He was 66.

Mr. Palombo was also a charter member of the Kingston Housing Authority, first elected to the position in 1973 and re-elected every five years thereafter. He served as both Chairman and Vice-Chairman of this board. He was part of the original membership that oversaw the construction and completion of the 48-unit Meadowcrest Housing units on Hillcrest Avenue

Born in Boston, he was the son of the late Joseph James Palombo and Carmela (Millie) Caliri. He moved to Kingston in 1971. He was first elected to the Board of Selectmen in 1981. He was re-elected twice and served on the board until 1990. He was the board's chairman from 1983-1984 and from 1989-1990. He also served on Kingston's Zoning Board of Appeals from 1996 to 2004.

He was the founder of the Silver Lake Regional School's Youth Football program.

Mr. Palombo was one of the original members of the Kingston Democratic Town Committee, serving for more than 25 years. He held a similar role with the Plymouth County Democratic League, and served both organizations as chairman for a number of years.

In 1988, he narrowly missed the chance to become the State Representative for the 12th Plymouth District, losing the Democratic primary by only two votes. Although he did not run again for that position, he did remain active in supporting candidates for local and regional office. He worked in law enforcement in a number of different capacities, as a Deputy Sheriff as well as most recently Director of Civil Process for the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department and as a police officer in the Town of Rochester. He had also served in the Army National Guard.

In addition to his work in the public sector, he ran his own Civil Process business known as Legal Support Services.

He loved hunting, and being able to help people wherever he could.

Mr. Palombo was honored in late November at the Halifax Country Club by more than 400 well-wishers, family and friends. He received glowing tributes from Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph MacDonald, former Sheriffs Flynn, Forman, Decas and Dorr along with Senator Therese Murray, former State Representative Tom O'Brien, State Representative Tom Calter, former State Representative Peter Forman and many others, all characterizing Mr. Palombo as someone who gave unselfishly to the community and to others. State Representative Daniel Webster presented him with Resolutions from the Massachusetts House of Representatives for his dedication and contributions to Plymouth County and the Town of Kingston, along with a Governor's Citation for his dedicated service to the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department and the Town of Kingston.

He is survived by his wife, Priscilla (Violette) Palombo of Kingston; a son, Mark Palombo of Plymouth; daughters Deana Palombo of Plymouth and Lynne Palombo of Portland, Oregon; sisters Joanne (Joni) Green of Panama City, FL; Mary Werlin and her husband Harold of Winchester, MA; a granddaughter, Abigail Jenkins of Plymouth; and many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and cousins

Calling hours will be held Thursday, March 15 from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Shepherd Funeral Home, 216 Main Street (Route 106), Kingston. Family and friends are welcome to gather at the Funeral Home on Friday, March 16 at 9 a.m., followed by a Mass at St. Joseph's Church in Kingston at 10 a.m. Burial will be at Evergreen Cemetery, Kingston. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Renal Cancer Research Fund, c/o Dr. Michael Atkins, Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center, Kirstein Building, Room 185, 330 Brookline Ave., Boston, MA 02115.

The truest line in this story is "He loved hunting, and being able to help people wherever he could." I don't know jack about hunting, but Joe was always willing to help people, even people who had been less than kind to him. He'd joke about it, but he'd do whatever he could for you. Also, he was more fun to flirt with than I can possibly tell you here.