U.S. Navy WWII veteran who loved his family and hiking
NORTH READING — Albert W. Avjian, 96, of North Reading died suddenly on Sunday, December 26, 2021. He was known as Al to his friends and as Walter to his family.
Al was born in Malden on August 28, 1925. He was the eldest son of the late Albert William and Mary (Hutchinson) Avjian. He was predeceased by his brothers, Ralph and James Avjian, and sisters, Helen MacKnight and Addie Ruggles.
Al was a U.S. Navy veteran of WWII. He was a Navy Armed Guard, 3rd class signalman and served from 1943 – 1945 on a tanker and two liberty ships. He was on a liberty ship offshore on Omaha Beach on D-Day.
Al graduated from Malden High School, attended Bentley College and earned his Certificate in Accounting and went on to work in the technology field. Al was the Operations Manager for Bolt, Beranek and Newman in Cambridge for 30 years.
Al loved his family, growing vegetables in his garden, hiking in Harold Parker State Forest, and watching TV westerns. He volunteered for the Mystic Valley Railroad Society (MVRS) and enjoyed going on many MVRS trips with his wife Sally.
Al was predeceased by his loving wife Sally (Holt) Avjian, with whom he shared 54 years of marriage. Al was the loving father of Robert Avjian and his wife Susan; Marlene and her husband David Johnson; Andrea and her husband Joseph Ridgley; and Karen and her husband Jeffrey Demers. He was the loving grandfather of Dara, Eryn, Sean, Thomas, Valerie and Roy, and the great-grandfather of Hannah.
Visitation will be held on Monday, January 3, from 4-7 p.m. at the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow St., North Reading. His funeral service will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 4, at 10 a.m. at the Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 235 Park St., North Reading, and a private family burial will be held in Riverside Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made in Al’s name to the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) at www.cst.dav.org.
To leave an online message of condolence please visit: www.croswellfuneralhome.com.
