Mario M. DiDiego

Saturday night, our dad Mario passed away peacefully in the comfort of his own home of 60 years in Plainview. At 90 years old, he is survived by his two sons and his daughter, plus his extended family including 8 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren along with assorted cousins, neighbors, friends and his cat, Suzie. Dad was a proud WWII veteran who was stationed in England with the Army Air Corps. From an early age, he had been nicknamed 'Crazy Mario' because of his unending crazy antics, stories and pranks. Once we heard the words 'I am going down to the cellar', we knew he would be down in his workshop for hours, emerging with some imaginative creation that would fascinate and entertain all of us. In the summers, we drove out to our grandparents' home in East Patchogue where we quickly learned from my dad what the beach had to offer in the way of fun. We spent our days swimming, fishing, crabbing, clamming and boating, with him helping to show us the way. Dad inspired all of us to do many adventurous and creative things. Mario will be missed by all.

Dad was a extrovert and a joker. His one goal in life was to make people laugh. He was also very inventive. If he had an idea in his head, he would make it work. Just ask Mike (his test subject). Water pogo stick, shoes to walk on water and a zip line that he forgot to put a stop point and that yielded a few bruises. Dad had a very strong influence on raising all of his children to succeed in life and become very independent. All of us would not be where we are without him.

Dad was not active in the church recently because of his health. He did, however, raise his children in the Catholic faith. As our home church, our family celebrated marriages, baptisms and communions at Our Lady of Mercy .

COMMENTS FROM FAMILY & FRIENDS:

TERRY DI DIEGO:

I am sitting and reminiscing about Mario, my father-in-law, and I can't help but smile. When I started dating Joe and met Norma and Mario, Norma was always a soft spoken, proper, beautiful lady. Mario was funny and sharing movies of him hollowing out chocolate candies, filling them with tuna and serving them to family members at a party. Also, Mario shared how he went into work early one day, into the ladies room, hooked up a tube from the toilet tank, rigged the tube to run into the toilet, placed a pair of man's shoes and trousers to be seen and syphoned the water to start flowing. Women would use the restroom, noticed a gentleman with a problem and go for help. The stories went on and on. Mario has been in my life for well over 40 years. The best part of listening to his stories in recent years was to know I was a part of his history. Mario loved to be in the middle of everything playing jokes on friends and family or impressing others with inventions of items that were thought to be impossible. A couple years ago Mario was in rehab after being in the hospital. I remember visiting him while he was in occupational therapy. The professions were encouraging Mario to build a model plane and he was trying to tell anyone who would listen about the mini planes he made from the rafters while he was in the service. Everyone would smile and nodded and went on with their business. We explained to the staff how accomplished Mario was and Joe brought a few of the planes to the rehab facility the next day. I remember the staff, including the doctor, crowding around Mario and his planes. Mario was in his glory, explaining how he made them and stories of his antics. I love you Mario, Rest in peace

DAVID FRITZSON:

Over the last week many family members and friends have spoken about my Grandfather Mario DiDiego and his accomplishments.

This is a picture of him, myself, my younger brother Daniel (I always enjoyed picking him up like that) and my Grandmother Norma DiDiego. We were visiting Mount Vernon and I remember it was a really hot day, and I couldn’t stop complaining saying that I thought history was boring. I also remember him taking me aside and explaining that it’s very important to remember history, as it helps you learn where you come from.

I’m pretty sure I wasn’t paying much attention and couldn’t wait to go home to play Nintendo 64, but over the years as I learned about how much he accomplished in the 90 years he was with us, I realized how important history really was. He served in World War II overseas and was ‘the kid’ of his station; running around fixing planes to avoid anyone getting in harms way. He created models of a variety of the planes flown over them out of small blocks of wood, using strands of his own hair to paint every detail and show other soldiers. He and his friends created a homemade satellite in the 60’s that was able to receive an audio signal from astronauts from the moon, and it had NASA go crazy when they sent in proof and how they built it.

Despite all the crazy stories and learning more about what my Grandfather did, nothing beats the fact that everyone can agree that he always had a smile on his face, loved his wife Norma, his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, more than anything in the world. With that kind of love, it made for a family I’m so fortunate to be a part of, and last Saturday, we lost a great man who was part of it.

I’ll miss you Grandpa Mario, and I'll close this with something you've told me the last few years of visits you and I had.

“Wow…what a ride it’s been!"

LINDA VERRILLI:

My memories of your parents and the joy they brought to my childhood will always remain with me. My time in Patchogue are especially vivid. I see him on the roof winding a hose to make a hot water shower at Aunt Sophie's, To a small child this was magic! How lucky to be a part of such a loving and caring family that made even a simple visit memorable! My deepest condolences to you, Joseph and Michael and all the family and friends who will feel this loss.

CAROL RIO:

So sorry to hear, Celeste- (((hugs))) the other interesting fact that I always remember was the metal detector that I believe he built- he used to tell all of us cousins that he was going to dig up a pirate's treasure chest full of gold- LOL!!!

ED GRIMALDI:

From the little black box, to building some awesome model airplanes, to wiring the bed springs, to building the battery powered bicycle, to marrying my beautiful cousin Norma - what a guy. With Mario, they broke the mold. As the almost end of the wonderful 'Bungalow Bunch', we sadly see the passing of a beautiful era. I guess it's up to us to pass on the incomparable heritage they gave us. My sincerest condolences to all of you, his children, his grandchildren, his great grandchildren, the rest of our family to whom he gave so much.

CORIE SCOTTO:

The first time I met Uncle Mario he took both the boys over to his basement and showed them all sorts of cool things. They were there for at least and hour with him and they came back all big eyed telling me about the cool stuff and fun they had! I am so glad my boys get to keep that memory with them

CHRISTINE SZESNET:

My deepest sympathies. I learned to love your dad through the stories my Dad shared, and I treasure the times I was able to hear and see him in action. My dad thinks of his cousins as brothers. God bless you all through this challenging time of loss.

DONNA FEARY:

The passing of a patriarch of a wonderful, brilliant family...his gifts live on without doubt. Thank God for the love shared and the sweet time to say good-bye. He gave the enthusiasm and joy of funny, quirky things, and his stories were never topped. Picture this: He captured flies and put them in the refrigerator to sedate them. Then he attached a string to each one with adhesive. As they warmed up, they would fly around, with him holding the strings like a bouquet. He had a new car and when he pressed the remote in a parking lot, the car responded saucily - "I'm over heeeere!" Imagine if your dad or grandpa were a Walt Disney character....wouldn't that be a legacy!

BARBARA DUGATKIN RUBIN:

My deepest sympathy to all of you. I remember the days back in Plainview when we would climb over our fences to each other's houses. What a great town we grew up in with good people and wonderful memories.