Joseph T. Kinney

Joseph T. Kinney, 51.
Husband, dad, longtime firefighter with fierce love for family and friends, If you were a friend of Joseph Thomas Kinney’s, you were one for life. Whether he met you in kindergarten class at Holy Name School in East Orange, or just last Thursday. And if you were lucky enough to call Joe a husband, Dad, a son or a brother, you knew love from Joe in its unconditional form.
Joe, of West Milford and formerly East Orange, died Dec. 20 at St. Joseph Medical Center in Paterson. He was a captain in the East Orange Fire Department, and a member of that department for 22 years.
Joe graduated from Bishop Francis (Essex Catholic) in East Orange and later Montclair State. After several years of unsatisfying work in the business world, Joe became a firefighter. One of East Orange’s Bravest and certainly one of its Kindest, Joe did not welcome a swarm of relationships into his circle (he had a big enough family to satisfy that), but those he called his friends were wholly nourished by his generosity, loyalty, deadpan humor and, above all else, his love. Joe loved whom and what he loved without reservation or regret, and he placed a stamp of eternity of that bond from the moment his heart led him to that decision to, well, forever. That went for his favorite rock band, Rush, his favorite sport, basketball, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in West Orange, and to those dear, lucky friends. At the top was Joe’s unswerving love for his wife of 16 years, Roseann Cruz Kinney, and their daughter, Elizabeth. They were the pearls of his existence.
Joe is also survived by his mother, Margaret Kinney (nee Burns) and siblings, Charles T. III and his wife Patricia; Michael P. and his wife Eileen; Kevin J. and his wife Claire; Susan Klipp and her husband Richard Klipp; and James J. and his wife Kendra. He is predeceased by his father, Charles T. Kinney Jr., and also survived by many loving nieces, nephews and cousins. Those young nieces and nephews may not know it now, but one day they will miss Uncle Joe’s lectures on the abiding greatness of Geddy Lee or Metallica. He was a recreational drummer and guitarist who secretly wished Rush would one day hand Neil Peart or Alex Lifeson their walking papers so he could share the stage with Lee.
Joe was the baby of Marge and Charlie’s brood and routinely needled about his lowly station on that ladder. Decorum prevents us from fully disclosing the ways in which clever Joe could exact his revenge. He was a giver in life. Among the causes he supported was the St. Baldrick’s Foundation “Shave for the Brave” event organized by older brother Kevin and run each September at the Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh Club in West Orange to raise funds for childhood cancer research. And Joe is a giver even in death. He has donated organs and tissue to the Sharing Network of New Jersey. May his love endure.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend the visitation at the O’Boyle Funeral Home, 309 Broad St., Bloomfield, on Tuesday, Dec. 27, from 3-7 p.m. The Funeral Mass will be held at Sacred Heart Church in Bloomfield at 9:45 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 28, followed by the interment at Rosedale Cemetery in Montclair.
Condolences at www.oboylefuneralhome.com