NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — Deacon Antonio M. daCruz, 80, of Marion died January 6, 2009 unexpectedly at St. Luke’s Hospital. He was the husband of the late Joanna S. “Jenny” (Santos) daCruz. Born in Warwick, R.I., the son of the late Miguel J. and Francesca (Reis) daCruz, he lived in New Bedford and Dartmouth most of his life before moving to Marion three years ago. Deacon daCruz was a parishioner of Our Lady of the Assumption Church where he served as deacon. He was ordained to the permanent diaconate in 1982. He was formerly employed as a electronic engineer at the U.S. Naval Underwater Systems Center for many years until retirement. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus and the National Association of Retired Federal Employees. He was a graduate of Northeastern University, class of 1956 and was a member of the Eta Kappa Nu Fraternity. He was a loving father and grandfather. He leaves two sons, Antonio daCruz Jr. of New Bedford and Miguel “Michael” daCruz of Dartmouth; five daughters, Linda Teixeira of Marion, Joan Dancy and Andrea Barrett, of New Bedford, Anita Atalig of Tamuning, Guam and April Agbai of Baltimore, Md.; 20 grandchildren, including Leo Beltran, III and Victor Maisonave III, who were Deacon daCruz’s caretakers for a few years; 20 great-grandchildren; and nieces and nephews. He was also the father of the late Koren daCruz and the brother of the late Joseph daCruz, Robert daCruz and Mary Walker. A wake service for Deacon daCruz was held Monday in Our Lady of the Assumption Church. His funeral Mass was celebrated there on Tuesday, followed by burial in St. John’s Cemetery.