Roxbury Township,  Joseph Oefelein passed away peacefully on December 24, 2014 from a short illness. He was born in Staten Island, NY to Andrew and Mary Rose (Gallagher) Oefelein.  He served in the United States Marine Corps from 1948 to 1952.  He graduated from Manhattan College with a B.S.in Electrical Engineering and obtained his M.S. from New Mexico State University.  He worked for Western Electric, Bell Laboratories, and Lucent Technologies, as a member of the technical staff, during the course of his career. He was a member of the Roxbury Auxiliary Police Association and was an usher for St. Therese’s Church in Succasunna.  He enjoyed cryptography and crossword puzzles and stayed current on technological and scientific information.

 He was predeceased by three sisters and one granddaughter. He is survived by his loving wife of 62 years, Melissa (Bluemel) Oefelein, his brother Andrew (Sonny) Oefelein; and his seven children MaryAnne Cospito of Ormond Beach FL; Joseph Oefelein and his wife Lisa of Pleasanton CA; Carol and her husband Alan Bilsky of Bangor, PA; Peggy and her husband John Kavanaugh of Rockaway, NJ; James and his wife Kathy Oefelein of Wesley Chapel, FL; Peter and his wife Carolyn Oefelein of Washington, NJ; and Melissa and her husband Albert Wartman III of Columbia, NJ.  He is also survived by seventeen grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

 Friends and relatives may visit at the Davis & Hepplewhite Funeral Home, 96 Main Street, Succasunna 973-584-7264 (davishepplewhitefh.com) on Sunday from 2 – 6 pm. The Funeral Liturgy will be held on Monday, 10:30 am at St. Therese R C Church, Succasunna. In lieu of flowers, a donation to your favorite charity would be appreciated.