News

By Liz Best

OCEAN RIDGE —  Michael N. Pettinicchi of Ocean Ridge died Feb. 16. He was 90 years old.
Born in Lucito, Italy, Mr. Pettinicchi grew up in Waterbury, Conn. He and his wife, Elizabeth, raised their three children in Cheshire, Conn.
He was a World War II veteran, a retired U.S. Army colonel and a senior tax examiner for the state of Connecticut.  Later he was a partner in Michael J. Pappa Associates and Waterbury Beef Foodland Supermarket.
The Pettinicchis  moved to Ocean Ridge in 1980, where they invested in real estate, according to their oldest son, Michael Pettinicchi of Fort Lauderdale.
“He drove to the office [in Boynton Beach] every day, right up to the day he died,” he said.
Mr. Pettinicchi’s family will remember his love of Italian food and his willingness to help others.
“He was always there for us, “said Michael Pettinicchi. “He was sort of a homebody kind of person … And he enjoyed his food. We all do.”
In addition to his wife and son, Mr. Pettinicchi is survived by a daughter, Diana Pettinicchi of San Francisco; a son and daughter-in-law, Robert and Anna Pettinicchi of Cheshire, Conn.; three grandchildren; and a sister, Josephine Guastaferri of Prospect, Conn.
A funeral mass was held Feb. 22 at St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church in Delray Beach. Entombment with full military honors was held at the Boca Raton Mausoleum.
The family asks that donations in Mr. Pettinicchi’s memory be made to Hospice of Palm Beach County, 5300 East Ave., West Palm Beach, FL 33407, or to the charity of your choice.