Frederick Richard Medugno

Frederick Richard Medugno was born in Malden, MA on June 8, 1934, and passed away on May 4, 2024, at his home of 50 years in Loma Portal, San Diego, CA, a month shy of his 90th birthday. He was the father of six children and five stepchildren, and the grandfather of 18 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren. He was also the beloved uncle and great-uncle of numerous nieces and nephews.

Frederick (Fred) was the fifth child of six surviving children to Enrico (Harry) Medugno and Vincenza (Vinny) Morganti, both Italian-Catholic immigrants from Montefredane, Avellino (near Naples), and Messina, Sicily, respectively. Harry and Vinny immigrated to Boston separately in the early 1920s before meeting and marrying in their new country.

Fred and his siblings Vincent, Susan, Mary, Thomas, and Edward, who all preceded him in death, were raised in Malden, a suburb of Boston. Growing up on Boylston Street in Malden, Fred spent a lot of time playing in the streets with the neighborhood kids and his younger brother Eddie. My father was a good student and a standout football player in high school. That led to him playing as an undersized two-way lineman in college for the Northeastern University Huskies in Boston.

Fred loved football and his name frequently appeared in the Sports sections of local Boston newspapers. After his college career ended, he was honored to be invited to attend the Philadelphia Eagles training camp to compete for a spot on the team. He declined the invitation, believing he was too small to play in the NFL, saying that “they would’ve killed me.”

While working at Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company as a co-op student, he met his first wife Theresa (Terry) Welby. They were married in St. Polycarp Catholic Church in Somerville. Their first son Frederick Joseph (Joe) was born in Brookline, MA. The family relocated to Philadelphia and then Fort Benning, GA as Fred Sr. served in the U.S. Army for two years. In May 1959, their second son Richard Anthony was born. When Fred left the service, he moved the family back to Boston, where their first daughter, Marisa Ann, was born in Brookline, MA.

In 1961, Fred and his family relocated to San Diego, California where Fred landed a job at General Dynamics. In quick succession, three more children arrived to complete the family. Michele Anne, Kevin Michael, and Tina Marie.

Fred bought a home in the San Carlos area of San Diego. In 1967, Terry and Fred separated and divorced. Fred moved into an apartment in Ocean Beach and loved spending time with his family at the beach. In 1974, Fred bought a home in Loma Portal, where he lived for the next 50 years.

Fred spent his entire career working in the IT industry in San Diego, mostly as a computer programmer and a Principal Senior Analyst. At Syscon he met his future wife Pam. They were married in 1989 and have spent the last 40 years together as partners lovingly supporting their big, blended family of children (including their spouses), grandchildren (including their spouses), and great-grandchildren. Pam’s children Rick, Stephanie, Charlie, Wendy, and Tara considered Fred a wonderful stepfather and are grateful that he came into their mother’s life and their lives. Fred loved his faith and enjoyed singing in the choir at St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church for many years.

As the last surviving member of his family of origin, Fred carried the title of “patriarch” proudly. He loved his siblings deeply and missed them greatly when they all left this world before he did. The extended family members that Fred leaves behind will miss him immensely. One of his surviving cousins who had known Fred for 80+ years may have described him best when she said, “He was a great man. He always loved children and he was a family man from way back.”

Fred’s children and grandchildren want everyone to know they feel blessed to have had him as their father and grandfather. May he rest in peace knowing he is loved, missed, and will not soon be forgotten.