Obituaries This section is dedicated to alumni who have died since 2018.
James C. Dybes, Jr. ’46 passed away on Oct. 16, 2020 at Scripps Green Hospital in San Diego, Calif. He enlisted in the army after graduating from LA and served in Japan during the Occupation as the editor of the Stars and Stripes newspaper. After his tour of duty, he received a B.A. in education from Boston University, and eventually a master’s degree in education.
In retirement, Tom was active with the Knights of Columbus, the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Loyal Order of Moose. He also did volunteer work for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, Meals on Wheels and Habitat for Humanity. He also authored two books, When the Sacred Marriage Ends and Veteran and Fraternal Clubs at Bay.
David is survived by his wife of 64 years, Randy (Kliger) Zussman, as well as his children and grandchildren.
Moving from West Roxbury to San Diego in the early 1960s with his wife Marilyn, James taught in the Diego city schools for 30 years. After Marilyn’s passing, James married Jean Dybes and they spent 17 wonderful years together enjoying music and world travel. James had many interests, including flying single-propeller airplanes and private jets, USO volunteer work, reading, jazz events, tennis, fishing in San Diego and Mexico, automobiles, technology and current events. He resided in Carlsbad, Calif. until his death.
Paul Leo Flynn, Sr. ’48 died on June 17, 2020, at age 91. A graduate of Fordham University, he was the retired owner of Stop Loss Insurance Brokers in Boston. He worked for the city of Boston for 60 years and knew every shop owner, police officer, and neighbor. He was always impeccably dressed and known for his pocket squares and colorful ties, and he greeted everyone with a smile and a kind word.
Irving D. (Sonny) Weiner ’56 died on Aug. 9. 2020, after a brief illness. He was 85. Sonny was a football standout, both at Lawrence and at Northeastern University; he later earned a B.S. in accounting at Bentley College. Following an early career as a CPA, he owned and operated a successful retail business on the South Shore for over 30 years, retiring in the mid-2000s. Always generous to family and friends, Sonny contributed to over 35 charities each year, many of which supported the humane treatment of animals.
In addition to his wife, James is survived by a son, two grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Thomas A. Moore ’47 passed away at age 93 on April 25, 2018, at his home in Alamogordo, N.M. He was active in the community and a member of Saint Jude’s Catholic Church. A veteran of World War II, he graduated from Boston College in 1951with a bachelor’s degree in physics. Tom retired from civil service, in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1986. His work involved electronic engineering in the fields of radar, transponders, communications, navigation, and survey with electronic position fixing equipment. With four U.S. patents to his credit, he was a recognized authority in the radar-transponder field. He published in Proceedings and presented over 35 papers at conferences throughout the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
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Joseph A. Zanni ’54 passed away on Feb. 2, 2019, surrounded by his loving family. He was 85. In addition to his wife Sylvia (MacMillan), to whom he was married for 62 years, he leaves three sons, 12 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren, as well as two brothers Tom is survived by one sister, two sons, three and two sisters. One brother, Dominick grandchildren, and several great-grandchildren Zanni, predeceased him.
He is survived by his wife, Susan Leonard Flynn, as well as four children, nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. One daughter, Lisa Flynn, predeceased him. David T. Zussman ’49 passed away at his residence in Chestnut Hill, Mass., on May 5, 2021. He was 90 years old. A graduate of Tufts University, with graduate work at NYU business school and the Harvard School of Design, he was a leader and pioneer in residential and commercial real estate. He founded Creative Builders, which became Boston Development Group (BDG) in 1956, and he was the first to convert apartments into condominiums, winning 10 national awards for excellence in design, construction and development. In 1975, David created First General Realty Corp., a management and leasing company that manages Boston Development Group’s diverse portfolio of buildings. His firm has developed, constructed, marketed, and managed apartments, condominiums, offices, hotels, senior communities, and retail spaces along the East Coast of the United States from Buffalo, N.Y. to Florida. His philanthropy has touched many people.
He leaves his significant other, Sheila Byers, as well as a daughter, Christine Bielakowski, and many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, and grand-nephews. Neil Wiener ’58 died in Los Angeles on March 18, 2019, at age 78. After graduating from Lawrence, he earned a BA from Brandeis University and a Ph.D. in psychology from New York University. After a post-doctoral year at the University of California, San Diego, he joined the psychology department at York University in Toronto. Neil was a dedicated and creative teacher and researcher for over 40 years, focused on issues related to the biological basis of behavior. A kind friend and colleague, Neil was also an avid and eclectic reader, particularly enjoying poetry and all aspects of history, and he loved gardens, art, and music. In addition to Myra, his wife of 52 years, Neil is survived by a son, three grandchildren, a sister, two nephews, and a brother-in-law.
