At the age of 91, Richard Coccola passed away on March 21, 2024. Richard, known all his life as “Dick”, was born in Rye New York to Anthony and Irene (O’Brien) Coccola, and was the younger brother to Robert.
An athlete affectionately nicknamed “Coke”, Richard played three sports in high school and went on to play football at Niagara University in Lewiston NY, where he spent two years before enlisting in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War era. Dick served four years on the USS Estes touring the Pacific. He went on to earn a Bachelor’s degree from Boston University.
After college, Dick settled in Greenwich, CT with this family. He built his career in the publishing industry, working as a managing editor on various trade magazines, including some at McGraw Hill in Manhattan. He spent the last decade of this career with Caltex Petroleum Corporation, located in the Dallas, Texas area. Dick travelled the world editing and writing for the company’s international magazine. He welcomed the milder Texas weather, which enabled him to indulge his passion for golf as often as possible. He played the game well into his 80s, sinking at least one hole in one and reveling in the opportunity to play at the world-renowned Pebble Beach course.
In 1997, he met his wife and best friend Jennifer Burdette at the Brookhaven Country Club, and they settled in Addison, TX. While Dick enjoyed living in the Lone Star State, he was rooted in the Northeast, where he visited frequently to see family and friends, including his daughters Lorraine Coccola of Greenwich, CT and Linda Coccola of Mendon, MA; and grandsons Matthew Valianti of Boston, MA, and Eric Valianti of Austin, TX. Dick shared his love of sports with his grandsons, spending hours recapping the big games and becoming a fan of the New England teams in kinship with them. Dick was known for his vast knowledge of history and, of course, of all things sports.
He could always be counted on for wise counsel and interesting, insightful conversation. Dick will be remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather, friend, and veteran. In addition to Jennifer, Lorraine, Linda, Matthew and Eric, Dick will be missed by his stepdaughter Lisa Burdette and her children Brandon, Leighton and Alyssa, his nieces Susan Taylor and Katherine Bellotti, his nephews William and David Coccola. A remembrance ceremony will be planned for family and friends in the coming weeks.
