Richard (Dick) William Leo, 94, passed away in the comfort of his family at the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington on Thursday, November 1, 2018. Born in Jersey City, NJ, on April 20, 1924, he was the son of the late Richard W. and Frieda M. (Pagenkopf) Leo.
Dick attended school in Secaucus, NJ. He served his country during WWII as a member of the U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations. He was a recipient of the Purple Heart.
Following his honorable discharge, Dick spent his career as an ornamental ironworker working on commercial structures which included the Time-Life Building in NYC and the IBM Headquarters in Fishkill, NY. A lifelong resident of Secaucus, Dick moved to Moretown, VT, in 1994 to be closer to family.
Dick’s memberships included the Secaucus Hudson Masonic Lodge #72 F&AM where he was a former master, the Secaucus Volunteer Fire Department where he was a former captain and was a life member of the 10th Mountain Division Veterans Association.
Known for his excellence in cooking both as a chef and baker, he also loved gardening and enjoyed skiing in earlier years at Stowe and Mad River Glen.
Dick is survived by his nephew, Arthur Dreher and his wife Lynn of Moretown. He is predeceased by his sister, Emily S. Dreher, and his canine best friend, Ryan, an English setter. We can lovingly visualize Dick catching up with Ryan again and yelling “RYAANNNN!”
Arthur and Lynn extend their sincere appreciation to the doctors, nurses and support staff on McClure 5 at UVM Medical Center for the wonderful care and compassion shown to Dick.
Private services will be held from the Vermont Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Randolph. For those who wish, memorial gifts would be appreciated to Central Vermont Humane Society, P.O. Box 687, Montpelier, VT 05601 (www.centralvermonthumane.org). Assisting the family is Perkins-Parker Funeral Home and Cremation Service in Waterbury. To send online condolences visit www.perkinsparker.com.
