Daniel Riccio

Daniel P. Riccio, 73, of West Hartford, passed away peacefully at his longtime home on Sunday, January 2, 2022. He was the son of first generation Italian immigrant parents, Anthony Riccio of Castlefranco in Miscano and Carmela Schiavone of Accadia. Daniel was born May 19, 1948 in Hartford, where he lived out his early years of life. In 1957, he moved to Bloomfield, where he graduated from Bloomfield High School in 1966. After high school, Daniel attended Manchester Community College before transferring to Central Connecticut State University to further his education. In 1970, he moved to West Hartford, where he would reside for 51 years. Daniel worked at the Rec Center in Manchester, which with a twist of fate, gave him the opportunity to work at Glastonbury High School, where he spent 40 years as a Special Education teacher. Daniel touched so many lives. From his students, to family and friends, there was always room at his table. In 2016 Daniel met his caregiver/friend, Travis Eairheart of Meriden, who gave him a second chance at life after coming down with an illness in 2012.

Daniel is survived by his brother, Mark A. Riccio and his wife Anne of Wethersfield, as well as his two nieces, Marie Cowan and her husband Mark and Karen Riccio and his great-niece, Lillian Claire Cowan.

Funeral services will begin on Wednesday (January 12) at 9 a.m. from the D’Esopo Funeral Chapel, 277 Folly Brook Boulevard followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick-St. Anthony Church, 285 Church Street, Hartford. Burial will be in Mt. St. Benedict Cemetery, Bloomfield. Family and friends may call on Tuesday from 4-6 p.m. at the funeral chapel. Masks are required for all indoor services. Donations in Daniel’s memory may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or Dana Farber Cancer Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284-9168. To share a memory of Daniel, please visit www.desopofuneralchapel.com.