Richard Joseph Kolodgie of Wilmington, died after a long battle with cancer on June 28th, just 5 days before his 70th birthday.
Son of Dolores and the late Edward Kolodgie, Rich was born in Bloomsburg, PA and raised in Lansdowne. He graduated from Lansdowne Aldan High School, Bucknell University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, and then Temple University with a Master’s Degree in Finance. Rich started his career at the DuPont Company where he spent 20 years in senior professional and management positions. His true passion was teaching and coaching which is how he spent the latter years of his career.
Involved in making the community a better place, Rich was an active Rotarian with the Caesar Rodney Rotary Club. He was a dependable volunteer in several Rotary outreach programs and served on the board and as a past President. He also served 9 years on the Board of Catholic Charities with the last 4 years as Chairman of the Board. In his intrepid battle against cancer, Rich joined the Board of the Delaware Leadership Council of the American Cancer Society and was recently a celebrated speaker of ACS HEALED.
Rich was an amazing athlete and sports remained a passion of his throughout his adult life. He enjoyed and made great memories as a basketball coach for Saint Anthony’s grade school for many years. He was an avid Philadelphia sports fan and loved attending University of Delaware Football games as a season ticketholder for 40 years. Rich was always devoted to his family. His happiest times were spent at the beach with his loved ones enjoying boating, fishing, swimming and eating.
He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Judith Cole Kolodgie; their 2 children, Laura K. Sugrue (Eric) and Michael R. Kolodgie (Andrea); his grandson, Damien; his mother, Dolores Kolodgie; and his sister, Ellen Wunderlich.
A visitation will be held from 5-7pm, Wednesday, July 6 at the McCrery & Harra Funeral Home, 3924 Concord Pike (with additional parking available in the rear parking lot of the Brandywine YMCA, 3 Mt. Lebanon Rd.). A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11am, Thursday, July 7 at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church – where Rich was a longtime parishioner – 901 N. DuPont St. Interment at Edgewood Memorial Park, Glen Mills, will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests honoring Rich’s memory by sending a donation to Catholic Charities, 2601 W. 4th St., Wilmington, DE 19805 or to the American Cancer Society – Delaware, P.O. Box 30386, Philadelphia, PA 19103.
