Rick was born in Fall River, MA, the son of the late Americo and Marion (Wood) DeMarco. He attended B.M.C. Durfee High School and graduated from Southeastern Massachusetts University (now the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth) in 1963.
Rick had a 33-year career as a chemist at Clairol before retiring in 2001. A competitive long jumper and sprinter in college, Rick later shifted his focus to distance running. He was a multi-time qualifier for the Boston Marathon and a frequent age group champion in competitions throughout Connecticut and beyond. Often the first to arrive and the last to leave each road race, Rick cherished the camaraderie with his running friends even more than the awards. Later in life, he turned his attention to indoor rowing and was recently 7th in the Worldwide RowErg Rankings for the 80-84 age division.
Besides his wife, Rick is survived by his twin brother, Joe, of Glastonbury, CT; and an older brother, Donald, of Ontario, Canada. He took great pride in the accomplishments of his children: Jane Ott (David), of Darien, CT, Stephanie Winter (Chris), of Fairfield, CT, Diana DeMarco, of Acton, MA and Doug DeMarco (Stephanie Adickman), of Montclair, NJ. He treasured every moment with his grandchildren: Kelsey, Meredith, Caroline, TJ, Pierce, Griffin, Zoe, Eliza and Louisa; and his great-grandchildren, Oliver and Elliott.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, November 4, 2024, at Saint Edward the Confessor Church in New Fairfield. Burial will follow at St. Peter Cemetery in Danbury.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in Rick’s memory may be made to the Laddie Lawrence Scholarship Fund (www.runsignup.com/Race/Donate/CT/Westport/WestportSummerSeries).
