Ralph J. Carr Jr., a Chelsea native who went through the city’s schools and became a diamond setter known in Boston’s Jewelers Building and at his own shop in Saugus, died on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, of esophageal cancer, the funeral home’s notice says. He was 67 and lived in North Andover.
He was born in Chelsea on September 7, 1959, the son of the late Ralph and Helen (Defeo) Carr, and later lived in Saugus. Trained through the GIA, he spent years as a bench jeweler for Sterling, now Signet Jewelers, at Belden, Kay and Jared stores in Massachusetts and Georgia. He then opened RJ Carr Jewelers in Cliftondale Square in Saugus and moved it to Saugus Center. When the shop closed he set diamonds and did repairs at Baubles in Lynnfield. Custom pieces and the restoration of family jewelry were the work he was proudest of.
He received a liver transplant in 2003. In 2022 he received a kidney from his wife, Patricia.
He loved the beach and warm weather, Aruba most of all, and his family counts a trip to Puerto Rico among its best memories.
He leaves his wife, Patricia Nicolo of North Andover; his daughter, Jessica Cipoletta, and her husband, Joseph, of North Andover; a grandson, Sebastian Cipoletta, who called him PopPop; a sister, Donna Doucette of New Hampshire; a brother, Robert Carr, and his wife, Diane, of New Hampshire; a sister, Elaine Canning, and her husband, Michael, of Georgetown; and nieces, nephews and cousins.
Visitation is Friday, November 13, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Paul Buonfiglio and Sons-Bruno Funeral Home, 128 Revere Street, Revere. A funeral service is Saturday, November 14, at 10 a.m. at the funeral home, with a funeral Mass at 11 a.m. at Saint Mary of the Annunciation Church in Melrose. Burial follows at Holy Cross Cemetery in Malden. The family suggests memorial gifts to St. Mary’s School, 14 Otis Street, Danvers, MA 01923.
Compiled from information published by Paul Buonfiglio & Sons-Bruno Funeral Home, 128 Revere Street, Revere. Photograph courtesy of the family via Buonfiglio Funeral Home. This is our own summary, not the family’s obituary; read the full obituary and leave a condolence at the funeral home’s website. Corrections: we will fix any error promptly.