PLYMOUTH, Mass. — A motorcyclist who was among seven killed in a collision with a pickup truck last week was a family man, proud Marine and dedicated public servant, mourners said Friday at a funeral that drew about 200 people, including leather-clad bikers and law enforcement officers.
The funeral for Michael Ferazzi, 62, of Contoocook, N.H, was held at a church in Plymouth, Mass. The rumbling of motorcycles echoed through town as dozens of bikes made their way to the service.
Many riders were fellow members of the Jarheads Motorcycle Club, with which Ferazzi and the other six killed were riding when they died.
They hugged one another as Ferazzi’s flag-draped casket was carried into the church and offered a military salute alongside their bikes as the service ended with the Marine Corps hymn on bagpipes.
“Tough to lose your brothers, especially so many at one time,” said Jarheads member Paul Downey as he and his fellow bikers got on their motorcycles for the ride to the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne.
“He had a lot more life in him,” said retired Lt. Col. Joe Murray. Ferazzi was in his American Legion post, he said, and the two marched in parades together.
“He didn’t need to die when he was obviously enjoying the ride with his buddies,” Murray said. “But it’s good he died doing something he loved.”
Ferazzi’s oldest son, Matthew Ferazzi, remembered a father who loved motorcycles and spending time with his family.
He recalled golfing and going to Boston Red Sox games with his dad and how he enjoyed holidays.
His dad, he said, loved doling out nicknames and was a fighter, even in the face of cancer that had returned in January.
“The thing that brings us all together is love, love for my Dad,” Ferazzi said.
A funeral also was held for Daniel Pereira, 58, of Riverside, R.I.
Visitation was held at a Laconia, N.H. funeral home for Desma Oakes, 42, who grew up in Norwich and died with her boyfriend in the crash.
They are among seven bikers killed last week when a pickup truck hauling a flatbed trailer crashed into the group in Randolph, N.H. The pickup driver, Volodymyr Zhukovskyy, 23, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to seven counts of negligent homicide.