Obituary of Richard V. Petretti

Richard Vincent Petretti passed into eternal rest on May 12, 2020 after a brief illness. Born in the Bronx, NY on December 20, 1928, Richard was the son of Mario and Margaret Petretti. He graduated from Cardinal Hayes HS in 1946 and began college at New York University’s College of Engineering while working for National Gypsum Company in New York City. In 1952, he graduated from NYU with a BS in Chemical Engineering and promptly entered the US Navy’s Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI. Upon receiving his commission in March 1953, Ensign Petretti entered into active service as an Inspection Officer at the Naval Ammunition Depot in Hingham, MA. He was later deployed on the USS Yellowstone (AD 27) in the Mediterranean and received the National Defense Service Medal. He was honorably discharged from active duty in 1956 and continued serving in the US Naval Reserve until his retirement with the rank of Lieutenant Commander. After his retirement from active duty, Richard joined American Cyanamid Company as a Chemical Process Engineer. Over the next 24 years, Richard planned and directed the design and construction of various chemical plants worldwide and traveled to work onsite in Florida, Georgia, and Louisiana as well as international sites in Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Meanwhile, he diligently studied at night and received an MS in Chemical Engineering from the Polytecnic Institute of Brooklyn in 1972. In 1980, Richard joined Ebasco Services in New York as Senior Processing Engineer, running various feasibility studies. Always driven with the desire to further his education, Richard continued his night studies and graduated from the NYU Stern School of Business with an MBA in 1981. He later formed his own consulting company and outsourced his processing skills to Best Foods, Lederle Labs, and Nabisco. While Richard was proud of his career and educational accomplishments, he was at his happiest raising and spending time with his family. He married his beloved wife Maria in May 1953 and they resided in Hingham, MA until Richard’s departure from the Navy in 1956. They moved to Westchester County, NY and then settled in Wyckoff, NJ in 1962 where they would spend the rest of their 67 years together. They raised two sons and later spent many years nurturing their three granddaughters. Richard especially loved watching his grandchildren perform on stage and of course was most proud of their success in the classroom. Richard was a 58 year parishioner of St. Elizabeth’s Church in Wyckoff. Upon retirement, Richard enjoyed brisk walks through Wyckoff; watching Yankees Baseball, Notre Dame Football, and CNBC; reading novels; and listening to opera. Most of all, he enjoyed savoring his wife Maria’s cooking with a glass of red wine. Richard is survived by the love of his life for 67 years, Maria; his two sons, Richard S. and his wife Lola Langner; Gregory, and his wife Mayra; two granddaughters, Elizabeth and Catherine and his sister Virginia Petretti. He was predeceased by his sister Marguerite Petretti in 1996 and his granddaughter Alexandra Petretti in 2011. A memorial Mass will be celebrated in his honor at a future date. Private interment will be held at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne, NY. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in memory of Richard (Please copy and paste the link below) to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society https://action.nmcrs.org/page/contribute/donate2015 or the Navy SEAL Foundation https://www.navysealfoundation.org/donate/ Arrangements are by the Vander Plaat Funeral Home of Wyckoff (vpfh.com).