Robert C. Casey of Southold died at Eastern Long Island Hospital on Dec 11, 2014. He was 92 years old.
Mr. Casey, know to all as “Bob” was born in Brooklyn on November 13, 1922 to John and Lucienne (Didier) Casey. He was raised in Brooklyn and Rockville Centre.
It was as much an act of duty and service to his family as to his country that he immediately enlisted for the World War II in 1942. His mother, Lucienne, from Tourcoing in France, had come to the US as a WWI war bride so Bob still had a grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins living in France under the control of the Nazis. He served in the Army Air Force as a glider pilot and made landings in Normandy during the D-Day invasion, in Holland and over the Rhine into Germany. He was awarded the Air Medal with two clusters and a battlefield promotion to First Lieutenant.
After the war Bob worked briefly at Brown Brothers Harriman and National Cash Register. He then joined the 3M Company where he spent 39 years as a sales representative in New York City.
Bob loved to recount his stories of his time overseas during the war. He attended the annual Glider Pilot Association reunions held in different US locations every year. He also attended the 35th, 40th, 50th and 60th D-Day anniversaries in Normandy where he was honored for his service. Years earlier he had begun a pen pal relationship with a young Frenchman, Philippe Esvelin, whose interest in the war had led him to contact Bob when he took his address from the guest register at the American Cemetery in Normandy. Philippe wrote his first book about the D-Day gliders in 2001 with a preface written by Bob.
Before moving to Southold in 1988, Bob and his family lived in Garden City where he was active in St. Joseph’s Church, Little League, Girls Softball, Boy Scouts and the Knights of Columbus. He served two terms as Grand Knight of the Garden City Council.
In Southold, Bob was an active supporter of Eastern Long Island Hospital. He served on the Board of Trustees for six years and, as a member of the Community Development Committee helped plan various fund-raising events. He belonged to the parish of St Patrick’s Church and also the local American Legion and Knights of Columbus.
Bob loved golf, boating, fishing and was a hobbyist, making furniture, birdhouses, collecting stamps and coins. He also enjoyed gardening, photography and poker. He was always gregarious and social and loved meeting new people.
Bob is survived by Betty, his wife of 62 years, as well as his four children – Jane Pedrioli of London, Cathleen of New York City and Orient Point, Mary of Newburyport, Mass. and William of Brightwaters. Also surviving are seven grandchildren, brothers Daniel and James Casey and sisters Frances Yuengling and Jacqueline Bormann. Bob was pre-deceased by sisters Evelynne Kapples and Mary Jane Wass, and his brother John.
Visitation will be on Sunday from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. at the Coster-Heppner Funeral Home in Cutchogue. A funeral Mass will be offered on Monday at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick’s Church in Southold. Interment with military honors will follow at Calverton National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions to Southold Town Senior Services, P. O. Box 85, Mattituck, NY 11952.
