I was wondering why
@Joker (alias "Joe Kerr") hadn't posted in a while, especially in the "Jets Suck" thread after Aaron Rodgers went down. (Folks here will remember Joker was fond of calling him "Discount Double Dork.") After leaving phone messages followed by some Internet searching tonight it didn't take long to discover the sad news he has passed on. He was only 72.
I considered Jeff a friend, we attended several Patriots games together. We last spoke briefly by phone in early August; he was coughing and complained of symptoms from long-Covid. I had no idea how serious it was as he'd been in and out of treatment several years for respiratory issues. He once told me, "My doctor said, 'You're fat! You need to walk every day whether you want to or not!'" Whenever I checked in with him he assured me he was taking walks and doing well.
Naturally, "J.O." liked to eat and the times we tailgated he'd always volunteer, "I'll bring shrimp!" He frequented a gourmet deli near his Rhode Island home that stocked the biggest shrimp obtainable. What a guy he was -- tall, heavy set, usually laughing and/or ranting a purple streak about someone or something. His rants smacked of manic stand-up comedy and invariably had me in stitches.
Like me he had abidingly "old-school" perspectives on sports and of course, loved the Patriots. We saw eye-to-eye on most things, including enmity for the despicable Jete. He was convinced Roger Goodell is a criminal and even did research on it. A few years ago -- I think it was during the pandemic -- I took time off from posting during a down period with little energy or enthusiasm for mustering another "Jets Suck" annual thread kickoff. In an uncharacteristically kind and gentle way, Jeff phoned me a couple times to share how much the thread meant to him and a few other diehards. Without his persistent nudges it probably would have ended then and there.
Jeff was one of a kind, at least to me. He attended the original Woodstock festival, graduated from Boston University, played guitar, never married but loved the ladies and lived alone in a mobile home with his pet cat. He was widely traveled.
Whenever someone passes on, the usual sentiment is "RIP" -- rest in peace. I never have liked that. I prefer to think our souls are on a continuum, the next plane of existence brimming with love, exuberance, fellowship and adventure, free of physical pain or limitation. So have fun up there, J.O. Jeffy. And remember to save us some shrimp!
Jeffery Joseph “J.O.” O’Neil, 72, of Charlestown, passed away on Tuesday, August 29, 2023. Born in Providence, he was the son of the late Robert L....
www.providencejournal.com
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