J. Leonard 'Lenny' Ford passed away at his home in Palm Coast Florida on October 18th at the age of 85. Lenny was born and raised in East Boston, lived most of his life in East Boston, 14 years in Maine and the past 5 years in Florida. He was a WWII Army veteran serving as a 1st Sgt. for the Army Corps of Engineers. Mr. Ford was a supervisor of Bridges & Building at the Boston & Maine Railroad for 42 years retiring in 1980. He was a member of the Elks and VFW Post #08696 in Palm Coast Florida, a former member of the Billerica Elks and the Irish American Club in Woburn and was Past President of the Holy Name Society at Sacred Heart Church in East Boston. Lenny was a Scout Master for several years and played for the RAMS softball team in East Boston. He was the husband of M. Rita (Doherty) Ford of FL & the late Mary V. (Fisher) Ford. Father of Genevieve Nugent of Lynnfield, Gail Tacelli of Winthrop, Linda Romano of West Newton, Leonard J. Ford of Melrose and Helen Ward of Haverhill. Brother of the late Helen Burditt. Also survived by 11 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren. Stepfather of Donna Richard, Linda Hopkins, Michael Brennan, Karen Howard, Colleen Shea, Kevin Brennan and 9 step-grandchildren. Funeral from the Gately Funeral Home, 79 W. Foster St. Melrose on Thurs. Oct. 23rd at 8AM. Funeral Mass in St. Mary's Church, Herbert St. Melrose, at 9AM. Relatives and friends invited. Visiting hours Wed. 4-8 PM.