Mr. Seraphino C. De Lucia

OBITUARY – SERAPHINO C. DE LUCIA Seraphino C. (Sy) De Lucia of Coxsackie died on April 29, 2016 at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany, NY surrounded by his family. He was born on November 17, 1929 in Mechanicville, NY, the son of Alphonse and Adelina (Aurigemma) De Lucia. Mr. De Lucia graduated from Mechanicville High School with honors, and was offered a football scholarship to the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, where he received his bachelor of science degree. He always retained a fierce loyalty to the Fighting Irish team, as well as to the moral and intellectual excellence of the University. He completed his graduate studies toward advanced degrees at SUNY Albany and SUNY Oneonta. Mr. DeLucia devoted his life to education and the betterment of the communities of Coxsackie and Athens. He began his teaching career in Mayfield, NY in 1953. In 1955 he moved to Coxsackie and began a career at Coxsackie-Athens Central School District which lasted for thirty-seven years, 8 as a high school science teacher, 12 as junior-senior high school principal, and 17 as Superintendent of Schools. During his professional career, he also served at BOCES as a contractor for distance learning, and with the New York State Education Department in reviewing science and gifted and talented programs. In addition, he was the executive secretary of the Columbia-Greene Superintendent’s Association. Mr. De Lucia’s involvement with the Coxsackie-Athens community included the founding of the Coxsackie-Athens Community Band with his wife in 1973, where both were instrumentalists; member and past president of the Coxsackie-Athens Rotary Club; member of the board of the Coxsackie Yacht Club; lifetime member of the Coxsackie Sportsmen’s Club. He served on the original board of directors of Bethany Village, and was elected to and served two terms as the Coxsackie Town Supervisor. He was a longtime communicant of St. Mary’s Church and a member of the church choir. Following recovery from heart surgery, he was appointed to the board of directors of the Greene County Industrial Development Agency, where he served from 1999 until his death. In 2010, he was honored with the dedication of the SC De Lucia Education and Training Center, a facility located in Coxsackie that prepares people in Greene and surrounding counties for the workforce in twenty-first century technology. His contributions and commitment to the Coxsackie-Athens School District were recognized in 2012 as he became one of the first inductees to the Coxsackie-Athens Foundation for Education “Wall of Honor.” Besides his family and his religion, the great loves of his life were the students he had an opportunity to influence through his teaching and school administration, and the University of Notre Dame. He will surely be remembered for his various interests and hobbies, many of which he shared with his friends, family and students, including hunting, building electronic equipment and telescopes, chasing trains, building and flying model airplanes, participating in parades and concerts, filming C-A football games, snowmobiling, photography, and model railroading. Mr. De Lucia is survived by his wife of fifty years, Ione Patricia (Pat); five children: Paul, Ellen, and Jill De Lucia, Susan Konsul, and Nancy Bruno; five grandsons: Matthew, Peter, and Mark Konsul, and Jasper and Jared Skliba; two great granddaughters Coral and Piper; sisters Johanna, Esther, and Margaret De Lucia, brother Lewis, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his first wife Joan, his brothers Alphonse and Gilbert, and sisters Patricia De Lucia and Mary Gargano. Calling hours will be on Tuesday, May 3rd from 2 to 4 pm and from 6 to 8 pm at W.C. Brady’s Sons Inc. Funeral Home 97 Mansion Street, Coxsackie NY 12051. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at St. Mary’s Church, 80 Mansion St., on Wednesday, May 4th at 11 a.m., followed by burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to Catholic Charities of Columbia and Greene Counties, 431 East Allen St., Hudson, NY 12534 or to the Coxsackie-Athens Foundation for Education, 24 Sunset Blvd., Coxsackie, NY 12051. Electronic Condolences may be made at www.wcbradyssonsinc.net

Mr. Seraphino C. De Lucia

November 17, 1929 - April 29, 2016