Vincent J. Hardy

Vincent was born June 21, 1943, in Brooklyn, New York, to Vincent and Julia Hardy. He graduated from Aviation High School in Brooklyn and later earned an accounting degree from Pace University.

He married Lorraine Evelyn Libasci Hardy of Middle Village, New York, on November 21, 1971, at St. Margaret Church. Together they had three sons, and the family moved from Floral Park, New York, to Largo, Florida, in June 1985.

Vincent served in the U.S. Marines immediately after high school for two years, and then embarked on a career in the New York Transit Authority, where he reached the rank of sergeant and served until his retirement. He remained a loyal member of the NYPD Sergeants Benevolent Association throughout his life. Other professional pursuits included owning his own daily newspaper delivery service in New York and being a real estate broker in the Pinellas County area of Florida and income tax preparer before serving more than two decades as a dedicated public school substitute teacher.

Vincent pursued many hobbies and passions, including travel, scuba diving, sailing, fitness, biking, triathlons and marathons, Frank Sinatra music, line dancing to that “Old Time Rock & Roll,” coin collecting, being a proud grandparent, a connoisseur of Dad Jokes, and preserving the memory of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team. He loved following professional football and the college teams of his sons’ alma maters. While a New Yorker, he was a season ticket holder for the NFL’s New York Jets and USFL’s New Jersey Generals. As a Tampa Bay resident, he at points had season ticket packages for the NFL’s Buccaneers, NHL’s Lightning, and MLB’s Rays. He was just as comfortable in his living room watching the games on television with his favorite foods and snacks.

He was predeceased in death by his parents Vincent and Julia; his beloved wife, Lorraine; his brother, George Hardy; and his sister-in-law Madeleine Hardy.

He is survived by his sons Gregory Hardy and wife Laura Storemski Neel of Columbia, South Carolina, and grandchildren Daniel and Joseph and step-grandson Hunter Neel; Nicholas Hardy and his wife Emily (Wagner) of Bennington, Nebraska, and granddaughter Taylor and grandsons Zachary and Cole; and Andrew Hardy and his wife Christina (Schoen) of Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, and grandson Jack and granddaughter Grace; and two nephews and a niece.

Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 4, 2025, at Serenity Funeral Home and Serenity Gardens Memorial Park in Largo, Florida. A visitation and gathering will first be from 12:30-1:30 p.m. It will be officiated by Deacon Frederick Kunder of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint Petersburg.

In lieu of flowers, please send memorial donations to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (www.nationalmssociety.org).