Jean DePasquale

Jean DePasquale, a longtime resident of Montauk, died at home on Sept. 20 of respiratory failure. She was 87 years old.

Mrs. DePasquale came to Montauk in the early 1960s with her husband, Gene DePasquale.

In the late 1970s, the couple moved to Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia, where Mr. DePasquale was vice president of the construction company Anchor Engineering. They returned to Montauk after three years.

Mrs. DePasquale “never had a mean word for anybody,” her son, Eugene DePasquale of Montauk said. “She was always pleasant,” and she loved her family, her pets, gardening, reading, and summertime barbecues. Her husband died in 2007.

She was born on Dec. 17, 1927, to Peter Johnson and the former Florence Herbert and was raised in Freeport, where she was active in the Dean Street Chapel in her youth. She graduated from Freeport High School and worked at the Doubleday bookstore in Garden City, where she enjoyed meeting authors and eventually became a manager. She also lived in Syosset and East Williston.

In addition to her son Eugene DePasquale, Mrs. DePasquale is survived by another son, James DePasquale of Bridgehampton. A third son, Bruce DePasquale, died in 2006. A sister, Barbara Brown, who lives in Rhode Island, and six grandchildren also survive.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Montauk Community Church, with the Rev. Bill Hoffman officiating. Burial will follow at Montauk’s Fort Hill Cemetery. Memorial contributions have been suggested to East End Hospice, P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach 11978.