A community activist who enjoyed spending time with family
MELROSE — Anthony “Tony” Doyle of Crescent Ave, Melrose, passed away in hospice care after a long illness on November 23. He was 88.
Tony was born in 1934 in Medford to Anthony and Mary (Connors) Doyle. His father died suddenly a few months before his birth and his mother died during childbirth, leaving Tony an orphan.
He was raised by his grandmother Johanna in Medford for the duration of his childhood. He spent summers working on a farm in Manchester-by-the-Sea, got his first job as a paperboy, and then as a plumber’s helper when he was 13. At Medford High School Tony excelled in the vocational school, specializing in electrical work, which would become his life’s career. He became an Eagle Scout, a passion that he would carry into adulthood as a Scout Leader.
Tony’s grandmother died when he was 16, and he was then cared for by his mother’s close friends, sisters Mary Looney and Loretta Cox, the latter of whom became his adopted parent well into his later adulthood. After high school Tony joined the Army, and was stationed in West Germany at the height of the Cold War, specializing in radar and communications. He left the Army in 1956, and returned home where he met Elfriede Kropp, a local nanny from Germany. They married the next year and moved to Stoneham, then in 1966 to Melrose.
For the next decades Tony was manager of the Gillette Electrical Division in Andover, and later worked as an electrical vocational teacher at various trade schools, in particular Northeast Regional Vocational in Wakefield. Tony was a Melrose CYO and Babe Ruth baseball coach. He delighted in taking his kids – and the neighborhood kids – to Air Force and Army open houses at Hanscom and the old Ft. Devens, as well as to historical re-enactments In Lexington and Concord.
He was also a Melrose community activist who helped supervise the renovation of Main Street and the historical preservation of Lincoln School, and raised funds for the Melrose High School band. Tony’s favorite pastime was attending area dances with his wife Friede and friends. In retirement he was a Civil War buff and model train enthusiast, as well as an avid bicyclist. Tony enjoyed spending time with his adult children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, all of whom lived nearby.
Tony was the beloved husband of 63 years to Elfriede K. “Friede” (Kropp) Doyle. Loving father of Thomas F. Doyle and his wife Doreen of Nahant, David A. Doyle and his wife Janet of North Andover and Patricia A. McLaughlin and her husband David of Wakefield. Cherished grandfather of Erika, Victoria, Kyle, Cameron, Jamie, and Scott. Proud great grandfather of William, Benjamin, Hannah, Allison, and Charlotte. Also survived by cousins and friends.
Visitation was held at the Gately Funeral Home, 79 W. Foster St. Melrose, on Wednesday, November 30, 2022 from 4 -7 p.m. A Mass of Christian burial was held at St. Mary’s Church, 9 Herbert St. Melrose on Thursday, December 1, 2022 at 10 a.m., followed by a burial with military honors at Wyoming Cemetery in Melrose. Relatives & friends are respectfully invited to attend.
Memorial contributions may be made in Tony’s name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or at www.stjude.org. To leave an online message of condolence please visit gatelyfh.com. 
