Obituary of John Peter Del Gaudio

John Peter Del Gaudio
May 27, 1958 - March 29, 2024

Despite leaving at age 18, John was a lifetime Long Islander and loved growing up in Huntington. During every return visit, he would reminisce about which hills he sled down as a child, where elementary school friends lived, and how much he missed Hamburger Choo-Choo. His memories of Huntington were inextricably linked to his older brother Mike, whom he idolized. After losing their father when John was just 12, Mike largely raised his brother, an effort that was always appreciated and apparent by how much the two were alike.

John was a Regent Scholar and graduate of Huntington High School Class of 1976. He obtained a Business degree at SUNY Brockport and held random jobs until deciding to take the New York State Trooper’s exam after a night of drinking. He was undeniably proud of his 32-year tenure as a New York State Trooper where he enjoyed a diverse career in and around his Fairport, NY home. From being a uniformed officer on patrol, and working as a School Resource Officer, to being on the S.C.U.B.A. team where he helped with TWA Flight 800, and working September 11 Ground Zero. He was a Sergeant for E Troop in Rochester before spending the last several years of his career working undercover on drugs and firearms as part of the Community Narcotics Enforcement Team. He received recognition throughout his career,
including being awarded the Superintendent’s Commendation in 1996, the Gold Seal Award from the Rochester Safety Council in 1996, and named New York State Law Enforcement Officer of the Year by the American Legion in 1999. As much as he enjoyed his law enforcement
career, after retiring in May 2016 his consistent response when anyone asked if he missed working was “Not one bit.”

John loved old movies and visiting the locations where they were filmed, especially Lone Pine, California where he and his brother attended the annual Lone Pine Film Festival. Their expertise was rewarded when they were asked to be tour guides for the 2022 and 2023 festivals. Always quick to point out the distinct rock formations anytime they appeared on-screen, John was thrilled to be part of an event that honored a landscape he cherished. A lifelong baseball fan, John followed both the Yankees and the Mets before becoming season ticket holders of the minor league team where he and his wife lived, the Fredericksburg Nationals. He channeled his childhood desire to be a baseball player by playing in several softball leagues throughout adulthood, including with two different Volunteer Fire Departments, where he also served for 10 years. He was looking forward to hearing what team he would be on for this season’s Northern Virginia Senior Softball league.

While both were quick to state that a classic film festival is not where you typically meet “normal people,” let alone the love of your life, that’s exactly what happened during the 2013 Cinefest in Syracuse, NY. After dating long-distance, John and Rachel were married in 2016 and John moved down to Fredericksburg, Virginia to start their life together. The couple shared 7 wonderful years of marriage, laughing a lot and frequently traveling to wineries, film festivals, softball tournaments, visiting family & friends, Jamaica, and even his ancestral homeland Italy.
They shared a love of Halloween, old movies, music trivia, board games, great food, and baseball. During his wedding vows, John quoted the creator of Winnie the Pooh by saying “If you live to be 100, I want to live to 100 less 1 day so I never have to be without you.” He acknowledged that the math might not work out, but the sentiment stands. His prophetic request to not live a day without her has been granted but Rachel will forever miss her Tigger.

Always remaining close to Mike and sister-in-law, Dottie, it was no surprise that John doted on his two nieces, Lisa and Denise. He enjoyed lavishing them with presents, hearing about their lives, and joining them on trips to Disney World. He extended this attention to their own
expanding families, proudly displaying pictures of their respective children, Hazel and Tommy. Denise is expecting her second child, a boy, in August and has decided to name him after her favorite uncle - John - something that he would have absolutely loved.

A consistently happy person, John could often be found loudly laughing at the tv show Green Acres, reading biographies, watching old hockey clips, reading up on film history, listening to vinyl records, having phone conversations with loved ones, collecting movie memorabilia, cooking dinners, playing with his dogs Digby and Truffles, watching westerns, or taking care of his booth at a local antique mall. He was a kind and sentimental man who was a fan of John Wayne and Universal Monster films. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of TV & film stars, and 50s-70s music. He could talk for hours about his two favorite bands, The Beatles and The Beach Boys. He drew funny doodles for servers on the back of his restaurant bill and enjoyed sending out personalized cards for Christmas, birthdays, and anniversaries. John had a knack for becoming friends with the best people and he delighted in sitting back with a beer telling stories, discussing sports and movies, and just enjoying some good laughs.

While a heart attack took his body from us, John will forever live in our hearts and memories.

John is preceded in death by his parents George & Suzanne, half-sister Dolores, cousins Madeline, John, & Michael, niece and nephew Jill & Gabe, and pups Brutus & Patches.

Visitation and services will be held at the M.A. Connell Funeral Home from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM on Thursday, April 11, 2024. Followed by burial at Huntington Rural Cemetery. There will be an informal lunch in Huntington immediately after the burial. For planning purposes, please contact Dottie Del Gaudio at (631) 835-2350 if you will be attending this lunch.

Plans are being made for celebrations of life to be held in both the Rochester, NY and Fredericksburg, VA area. John loved his pets and all animals, especially manatees. In lieu of flowers please donate to The National Wildlife Federation.