Vieri "Guy" Volterra - 3/23/32 to 11/16/18 - Obituary
To all of you that read my blog(s) and my posts, I felt a need to add some information that was not originally on the first obituary. The two paragraphs below are not listed and written by myself.
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16 November 2018
Vieri "Guy" Volterra, Massachusetts Superior Court Judge, Mentor of Lawyers, Advocate for Social Justice passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 86 among his beloved 3rd wife Melanie Ray.
He was born March 23rd of 1932 to Germana and Renzo Volterra. He is survived by Gia Volterra de Saulnier and Joshua Volterra and grandfather to Charles Saulnier and Father in law to Richard Saulnier. He is also survived by his first wife, Margo Volterra and his second wife Kathleen Volterra. He also is survived by his brother Max Volterra, his wife Marion and their two children, Hanna Francis (married to Tom Francis and their two children) and Joel Volterra (married to Barbara and their two children).
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Actual Obituary
VOLTERRA, Vieri Massachusetts Judge, Mentor to Young Lawyers, Advocate for Social Justice Vieri (Guy) Volterra, age 86, of Boston, on November 16. Cherished and beloved husband of Melanie Ray. Father of Gia and Joshua; grandfather of Gia's and Rick's son Charlie. Brother of Max and brother-in-law of Marion. Cousin of Anna and Sara Volterra of Florence, Italy. Uncle of Max and Marion's children Hannah, married to Tom, and Joel, married to Barbara. Treasured by many friends and colleagues whose lives he enriched through shared interests and activities. Vieri was born in Milan, Italy on March 23, 1932. At the age of 7, he arrived in the U.S., living first in Cambridge and then in Attleboro. He graduated from Attleboro High School and earned his B.A. at Brown University. He was drafted by the U.S. Army to serve in the Korean War after college, and was stationed in Hanau, Germany from 1954–1957 with the 899th Tank Battalion. He graduated from the Boston University School of Law in 1959. Vieri's outrage at the acts of fascism in Mussolini's Italy and then McCarthyism in the U.S. when he was in college motivated him to dedicate his professional life to seeking social justice. He was a lawyer's lawyer and a judge's judge. He started out in solo practice in New Bedford where he went from criminal defense attorney to public defender, assistant district attorney, and counsel to the mayor on Model Cities. He also practiced civil, criminal, and municipal law in Attleboro with his brother Max. The highlight of Vieri's career was serving 27 years as a Massachusetts judge - first in the Taunton District Court and then for 20 years with the Massachusetts Superior Court. Judge Volterra was known as compassionate, fair, and very productive; he diligently presided in both civil and criminal cases in every county of the state. He was deeply devoted to the careers of his law clerks, for whom he was more mentor than boss. In his professional and personal life, he was admired for his wry sense of humor. After retiring from the court, Vieri rejoined his brother's law partnership and set up an independent neutral mediation practice. In 2002 he received the Law and Justice Award from the Commission for Social Justice, Sons of Italy in America. In 2009 he left private practice and joined the Senior Partners for Justice/Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Massachusetts Bar Association to represent indigent civil litigants in family law disputes, using his knowledge of Spanish to serve Hispanic clients who did not speak English. In 2012 he received the Victor J. Garo Public Service Award from the B.U. School of Law in recognition of his outstanding pro bono work. Vieri had a lifelong affection for his native Italy; he loved visiting family there and celebrating Italian culture, food, and wine. A lifelong champion of social justice, Vieri was vitally engaged in issues of oppression and conflict in the U.S. and internationally. A voracious reader of history and literature, he regularly punctuated his animated discussions of philosophy and politics with recommendations of books for his friends to read. Vieri will be interred at the Massachusetts National Cemetery for Veterans in Bourne, overlooking Buzzard's Bay where he loved to sail. A memorial service will take place there in spring, 2019. In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Vieri may be made to the Southern Poverty Law Center (www.splcenter.org) or the American Friends Service Committee (www.afsc.org).
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At this time there is to be a private service only.
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16 November 2018
Vieri "Guy" Volterra, Massachusetts Superior Court Judge, Mentor of Lawyers, Advocate for Social Justice passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 86 among his beloved 3rd wife Melanie Ray.
He was born March 23rd of 1932 to Germana and Renzo Volterra. He is survived by Gia Volterra de Saulnier and Joshua Volterra and grandfather to Charles Saulnier and Father in law to Richard Saulnier. He is also survived by his first wife, Margo Volterra and his second wife Kathleen Volterra. He also is survived by his brother Max Volterra, his wife Marion and their two children, Hanna Francis (married to Tom Francis and their two children) and Joel Volterra (married to Barbara and their two children).
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Actual Obituary
VOLTERRA, Vieri Massachusetts Judge, Mentor to Young Lawyers, Advocate for Social Justice Vieri (Guy) Volterra, age 86, of Boston, on November 16. Cherished and beloved husband of Melanie Ray. Father of Gia and Joshua; grandfather of Gia's and Rick's son Charlie. Brother of Max and brother-in-law of Marion. Cousin of Anna and Sara Volterra of Florence, Italy. Uncle of Max and Marion's children Hannah, married to Tom, and Joel, married to Barbara. Treasured by many friends and colleagues whose lives he enriched through shared interests and activities. Vieri was born in Milan, Italy on March 23, 1932. At the age of 7, he arrived in the U.S., living first in Cambridge and then in Attleboro. He graduated from Attleboro High School and earned his B.A. at Brown University. He was drafted by the U.S. Army to serve in the Korean War after college, and was stationed in Hanau, Germany from 1954–1957 with the 899th Tank Battalion. He graduated from the Boston University School of Law in 1959. Vieri's outrage at the acts of fascism in Mussolini's Italy and then McCarthyism in the U.S. when he was in college motivated him to dedicate his professional life to seeking social justice. He was a lawyer's lawyer and a judge's judge. He started out in solo practice in New Bedford where he went from criminal defense attorney to public defender, assistant district attorney, and counsel to the mayor on Model Cities. He also practiced civil, criminal, and municipal law in Attleboro with his brother Max. The highlight of Vieri's career was serving 27 years as a Massachusetts judge - first in the Taunton District Court and then for 20 years with the Massachusetts Superior Court. Judge Volterra was known as compassionate, fair, and very productive; he diligently presided in both civil and criminal cases in every county of the state. He was deeply devoted to the careers of his law clerks, for whom he was more mentor than boss. In his professional and personal life, he was admired for his wry sense of humor. After retiring from the court, Vieri rejoined his brother's law partnership and set up an independent neutral mediation practice. In 2002 he received the Law and Justice Award from the Commission for Social Justice, Sons of Italy in America. In 2009 he left private practice and joined the Senior Partners for Justice/Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Massachusetts Bar Association to represent indigent civil litigants in family law disputes, using his knowledge of Spanish to serve Hispanic clients who did not speak English. In 2012 he received the Victor J. Garo Public Service Award from the B.U. School of Law in recognition of his outstanding pro bono work. Vieri had a lifelong affection for his native Italy; he loved visiting family there and celebrating Italian culture, food, and wine. A lifelong champion of social justice, Vieri was vitally engaged in issues of oppression and conflict in the U.S. and internationally. A voracious reader of history and literature, he regularly punctuated his animated discussions of philosophy and politics with recommendations of books for his friends to read. Vieri will be interred at the Massachusetts National Cemetery for Veterans in Bourne, overlooking Buzzard's Bay where he loved to sail. A memorial service will take place there in spring, 2019. In lieu of flowers, donations in honor of Vieri may be made to the Southern Poverty Law Center (www.splcenter.org) or the American Friends Service Committee (www.afsc.org).
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At this time there is to be a private service only.
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