Joseph P. Hayes of Marshfield passed away peacefully, surrounded by the love of his family, on March 23, 2022 at the age of 86. Beloved husband of Marcia (Papineau) Hayes, he was the devoted father of Lori Hayes and husband Mark Chaffee of Vermont and Joseph P. Hayes, Jr., and wife Andrea of Millis and cherished grandfather of Emma Chaffee and Carolyn, Elizabeth, and Katie Hayes. Son of the late Francis and Ethel (McCarthy) Hayes, and brother of the late Francis Hayes, Thomas Hayes, and Mary Crowley, he is survived by a sister, Carol Willard, and several nieces and nephews.

Big Joe was an amazing man. He was married to his beautiful bride, Marcia, for 59 years. They honeymooned in Bermuda--during the Cuban Missile crisis!  Together they built "Marci's" restaurants and catering company in Needham and Wellesley. On many evenings you would find them setting up an "impromptu" dinner with friends and family. They also started one of the first Meals on Wheels programs in the country during the 1970's. When he wasn't feeding people, Joe spent many hours volunteering at church, school and Exchange club events, as well as visiting with Hospice patients, earning him the honor of Volunteer of the Year in 1993.

He was dad to Lori and Joe Jr. Dad was our protector, task master and extreme jokester. His "mystery rides" were legendary, as was his wicked sense of humor and his fondness for all things four legged. He could make anything grow, bringing even the scrawniest plant to bloom. He was our real live Santa, delivering such joy to so many little ones.

To Carolyn, Emma, Lizzie and Katie, he was Pops. They all spent many of their first days peacefully napping on his belly, while he held them close.  He loved to tease his 4 "goon girls", to take them on adventures, feed them powdered sugar donuts, and buy them the perfect gift. The Christmas he found a set of Teletubbies for baby Carolyn was gleefully epic! Same when he gifted Lizbug with his prize collection of bright blue Smurfs. Emma was always his favorite "granddaughter from Vermont" and Katie, later to the game, was one of the brightest stars in his Pop's sky.

Our Joe, Dad, Pops was the best. We will equal parts miss him terribly and laugh till tears telling stories of his antics and his pure love.

Rest easy, dear man. You made the world a better place.

Funeral services on Tuesday, March 29, 2022 will begin with a wake from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. at the MacDonald Funeral Home, 1755 Ocean Street in Marshfield, followed by a funeral procession to St. Christine's Parish Church, 1295 Main Street in Marshfield, where the Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Marshfield Food Pantry, by mail to P.O. Box 1097, Marshfield MA 02050 or online at https://www.marshfieldfoodpantry.org/

For online guest book, driving directions and other helpful information please visit the website macdonaldfuneralhome.com