Joseph E. Heller

Joseph E. Heller, 87, of Allentown, passed while in hospice care at Lehigh Valley Hospital on July 31, 2025. He was the husband of Carole D. (Ebert) Heller. Born in Allentown November 28, 1937 he was the son of the late Sylvester and Arabella (Souders) Heller. Joseph worked a short time at Mack Trucks and then as a self-taught carpenter for Joe Temmel & Sons. He was a life-long member of Lehigh Valley Carpenter’s Union, Local 600. When not on the job he would assist family, friends and neighbors with a myriad of building projects. He was preceded in death by his brothers Russell, Robert, Earl, Lambert, Kenneth and Richard and three sisters, Elizabeth (Betty), Grace and Evelyn. Surviving are his wife Carole and three sons, Randy of Allentown, Scott and his wife Buffy of Allentown, Rick and his wife Stephanie of Starboard Cove, Maine. Joseph has six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Even with this absence the family knows his legacy will live on because of who he was and what he did for others. A person’s legacy is one of tangibles: the love and memories of family and friends and the generations that follow. But the intangibles of a person’s life are what sets them apart. For this husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, neighbor and friend the heart and soul of this carpenter is held within all of the projects he worked on. His workmanship from the simplest of projects to the most innovative commercial buildings found throughout the Lehigh Valley contain his work ethic and integrity. No matter their purpose, whether it was so others might live more comfortably, or students could feel safe while garnering an education, to the public enjoying a performance at the Zoellner Arts Center on the campus of Lehigh University, they all unknowingly are impacted every day by the work he did. For our family, knowing his work will continue to touch others provides solace that his legacy will endure. A Celebration of Life is being planned by the family for November 2. Additional information will be provided to family and friends. In lieu of flowers the family would ask that donations be made in his name to a vocational/trade school.