John A. LeClair, Jr., 68

Mr. John A. LeClair, Jr., 68, of North Adams, died Friday morning, December 1, 2023 at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, after a courageous fight against a rare and aggressive form of cancer. He was born in North Adams on December 25, 1954, a son of the late John A. and Jean A. (Sebastino) LeClair. He attended North Adams schools, graduating from Drury High School. He also took classes in Fire Science at Berkshire Community College. John served as a Firefighter with the North Adams Fire Department for 7 years, until retiring due to an injury he suffered while fighting a fire. For the past 20 years he has been working as a maintenance supervisor at BART Charter School in Adams. He was a communicant of St Elizabeth of Hungary Church, North Adams. He was a former member of both the North Adams Lodge of Elks and North Adams Firefighter’s Local 1781 of the International Association of Firefighters. He enjoyed woodworking, gardening, and did carpentry and home repairs for many years. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, the former Kathleen M. Les, whom he married on June 13, 1981; his daughter, Kelsey LeClair and her partner Ryan Lawrence of Collingswood, NJ; two sisters, Suzanne Patenaude of North Adams and Linda Hoglund and her husband Edward of Merritt Island, FL; his nieces and nephews including Robert Patenaude and his wife Joanne of Clarksburg, Mark Patenaude and his wife Amy of North Adams, Scott Patenaude and his wife Cyndi of North Adams, Katie Kudelka of Florida; Adam Kudelka of Melbourne, FL, Michelle Kaneps and her husband Phil of Ocala, FL and Amanda Les of So. Easton, MA and her partner Jason Aguiar; his brother-in-law Ronald Les and his wife Sylvia of Cheshire, as well as several great nieces and great nephews. He was predeceased by his brother David LeClair and brother-in-law Bruce Patenaude. A celebration of John’s life will be held at a later date. Although John isn’t here with us, he will live on in the hearts of everyone whose life he touched.

Memorial donations may be made to the AstraZeneca Hope Lodge Center, 125 South Huntington Ave. Boston, MA 02130, or to North Adams Firefighter’s Local 1781 of the International Association of Firefighters.

The PACIOREK FUNERRAL HOMER, Adams, is in charge of arrangements. To leave a message of condolence, please go online to www.paciorekfuneral.com