Abel Correia, 91.

WEST YARMOUTH Abel Correia, 91, of West Yarmouth, formerly of Worcester, MA died peacefully December 30, 2011. Born on September 30, 1920 in New Bedford, MA to Serafim and Mariana (Souza) who emigrated from the Azores.

He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Shirley (Riddell) Correia and daughter Christine, son-in-law Jonathan, dearly loved grandchildren, Abegail and Benjamin Dube of W. Yarmouth; son Peter, daughter-in-law Joanne; beloved grandchildren, Samantha and Lukas Correia of Shrewsbury, MA; son Franklin Correia; daughter Marty Correia and daughter-in-law, Kate Conroy of New York, NY, and and his beloved son, Tony John. Surviving siblings, Hilda Jasinski, Arthur and sister-in-law Barbara Correia were predeceased by Joseph, Mary, Sarafina, and Lillian. Abel leaves behind many beloved nieces, nephews, and in-laws.

Abel worked as a shoe leather cutter in New Bedford before joining the US Navy during WWII, in which he sailed the Pacific and won several medals. In 1947 he joined the vaudeville adagio group The Three Glenns, who performed in dozens of theaters from New York City to Las Vegas. When the act performed in Sydney, Australia, Abel met his wife, Tivoli Theater ballet dancer Shirley Riddell. Married in 1949, the couple lived in Australia for ten years before moving to the U.S. with their three sons. From 1960 to 1981 Abel worked as a custodian for Worcester Public Schools and was notorious as the most entertaining and agile janitor the city had ever employed. After moving...