Lawrence (Larry/Lonnie) Watts, 67, died on February 23, 2016. He was born and raised in Cambridge, MA, the son of Lawrence J. Watts and Mary (English) Watts.  He attended St. Mary's High School, and subsequently received a BA in History and Education at Boston College.  He went on to earn an MBA from Bowling Green State University in American Studies.   In addition he proudly served in the U.S. National Guard for six years.  Upon graduation he began his 10-year career as a Social Studies teacher in the Winchester school system where he was named Teacher of the Year. An adventurer and student at heart, Larry pursued other career paths over the years, and was currently employed by ADP as a Payroll Implementation Specialist.

In 1975, he married the love of his life, Gloria Montuori-Watts, and lived in Watertown. When his son Jonathan was born in 1982, Larry wanted to make sure that Jon had a big yard to play in, and so the family moved to Ashland in 1986. So often you would find father and son playing some kind of sport in the backyard sounding like there was a whole team out there, rather than just the two of them.

Larry (Uncle Lonnie) loved to tell stories and make people laugh with a boisterous voice. Referencing himself as the "Quiet Man", he was the lifelong ringleader of both his friends and family, ensuring all enjoyed their time in his presence.  He loved to play harmless pranks on all he loved, never once admitting a role in the hijinks.  Despite that, we always knew it was Lonnie. The Watts extended family especially cherished the annual ritual of Lonnie distributing gifts as Santa.

He was a devout Catholic who loved all Boston sports, swimming, and pilgrimages to historical sites. In his spare time Larry thoroughly enjoyed disassembling broken small appliances and engines.  Although there may have been some extra parts left over once the item was rebuilt, most were returned to working order.  The city boy also learned that he enjoyed working in the yard, and that is where you would find him most weekends. His favorite food was bacon, which he would consume whenever possible, and he would relax by watching reruns of "Law and Order" and "Seinfeld."

Besides his wife and son, Lawrence is survived by his loving sisters and their husbands, Carolyn and Daniel Murphy of Medford, Donna and Edward Ricarte of Billerica, as well as his devoted in-laws Madeline and Henry Martocchio of Watertown, Janice and Michael Pisano of Framingham, Barbara Montuori of Watertown, and Richard and Mary Montuori of Framingham. In addition he is survived by numerous nieces and nephews and countless grand-nieces and grand-nephews. Finally, he is survived by his close and long-life circle of friends from Cambridge- you know who you are.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated Saturday Feb. 27th at 11:00am in St. Matthew's Church, 26 Highland Street in Southboro with burial to follow in Wildwood Cemetery in Ashland. Calling hours will be held Friday from 4:00-8:00 PM in the Matarese Funeral Home, 325 Main St. in Ashland. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Lawrence J. Watts Scholarship Fund, C/O Gloria Montuori-Watts, 37 Davis Farm Rd., Ashland, MA 01721-1828