Francis T. "Frank" Arena

Francis "Frank" T. Arena, 86, beloved husband of the late Teresa (Jones) Arena, passed away on Saturday, August 18th, 2018 after a long battle with cancer at Melrose-Wakefield Hospital. Born in Medford, he is the youngest son of the late Guy and Mary (Cappuccio) Arena. He is also the brother of the late Anna and Jerry DiGiovanni and the brother of the late Anthony Arena.

Frank is the Beloved and Devoted father of Jennifer DelGreco and the loving brother of Ursula Arena. Additionally, he was the dear friend and father figure to Lisa (Hennings) LaPlante, as well as dear friend and protector of the late Mary Lawler. He was also the loving uncle of Dianne and Mark Thorley and Arthur DiGiovanni and Partner Craig Scheinfeld. Additionally, he was also the loving uncle to Liane and Alan Spendlow and family and Colleen and Gary Borup and family.

Frank was an active member of Saint Patrick's Parish in Stoneham, MA. He leaves behind many friends of the parish community and will be missed by all who knew him. He will be remembered for always being the peacemaker, for always having nothing but kind words spoken, for his sense of humor despite challenging situations faced, and for his love of both The New England Patriots and Boston Bruins, as well as Cadillac cars and band music.

Frank served in and traveled the world as a Senior Officer of the U.S. Navy in the 1950's. His passion for HAM radio, computers, and technology defined him and he was always ahead of his time in his fascination and understanding of all things engineering and technology-related. He worked as a Senior Electrical Engineer for Honeywell for 30+ years prior to retiring early to enjoy Clearwater, Floridian winters with his wife Teresa and his daughter Jennifer where he also had many friends.

Despite not having a large family of survivors himself, Frank touched everyone he knew and will be remembered fondly - and missed - by many.

Funeral from the Barile Family Funeral Home, 482 Main St. (RT 28) Stoneham, on Wednesday, August 22nd, at 9am followed by a Funeral Mass Celebrating Frank's Eternal Life in St. Patrick Church, 71 Central St., Stoneham at 10am.

Family and friends are cordially invited to gather and share memories with Frank's Family in the Barile Family Funeral Home on Tuesday, August 21st from 3-7pm. Parking attendants and elevator available. Interment will be in Oak Grove Cemetery, Medford.

Please consider making donations in Frank's Memory to St. Jude's Children's Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place Memphis, TN 38105 or to St. Patrick's Parish General Fund, 71 Central St., Stoneham, MA 02180.

For more information, www.facebook.com/BarileFamilyFuneralHome.