Obituary of Frank Nicholas Fico

Frank Nicholas Fico, 85, passed away on July 15, 2017 at 5:45 a.m. from complications related to Parkinson’s disease.  Born on October 18, 1931 in Summit, NJ, he was the son of the late Frank Fico and the late Philomena Marcantonio Fico.  He was preceded in death by his wife Valerie, sister Anna Czapla and brothers Mark and Ralph.

Frank served in the US Army from 1952-54.  Upon his discharge, he worked at the Summit Post Office until his retirement in 1987.  In 2013, he moved from his long-time home in Gillette, NJ to an apartment in Herndon, VA to be closer to his son’s family.   He was certainly not an avid traveler, but took the family on long automobile vacations every summer during the 1970s, including two memorable month-long cross-country trips.  He spent many hours tending his backyard garden in Gillette, and was able to continue this passion at his apartment’s garden plot after moving to Virginia.  He also developed an interest in cooking and baking later in life, and was well-known for distributing his famous biscotti and other dessert items to lucky residents of Arbor Terrace.

Frank is survived by his son, Frank James Fico (Bridget), granddaughters Jamie and Kerry Fico (all of Reston, VA); sister Madeline Carambio of Tinton Falls, NJ; sister Mary Redman (Bill) of Bayville, NJ; brother Phillip (Debbie) of Annandale, NJ; as well as several sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews.  There will be a memorial reception at 7:00 p.m. on August 9 at Arbor Terrace, 1100 Dranesville Road, Herndon, VA, and a funeral Mass at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Stirling, NJ at 11:00 a.m. on August 12 (the family will receive guests starting at 10:00 a.m. in the church vestibule).  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the National Parkinson Foundation (http://www.parkinson.org/).