DURHAM — Frank Thomas Daddario, 97, died on Sunday, October 2, at Croasdaile Village in Durham.
Frank is survived by his wife, Bernie; and three daughters: Janis Waltrip and her husband, Michael of Winston-Salem, Marsha Hare and her husband, George of Durham, and Gina Daddario and her husband, Robert Stein of Winchester, Va.; and grandchildren, Tom Waltrip, Becca Waltrip, Allison Hare Kelly and her husband, Matthew, Wesley Hare, Daria Stein and Levi Stein.
Frank was born the fifth child of Mary and Joseph Daddario in Schenectady, New York. He attended the University of North Carolina and graduated from the first engineering class at Chapel Hill. He served in the Navy on the USS Yorktown during World War II, including an interim stint as Captain. While docked in Seattle, he met and married Berniece Correll. They moved to Durham in 1947 where Frank established Carolina Air Conditioning Company and served as its president until his retirement at age 92.
Civic-minded, Frank served as president of many organizations, including the Durham chapter of the American Cancer Society, Durham Engineer’s Club, Durham Sales and Marketing Executives, the North Carolina Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors, the Topper’s Club, among many others. He was especially proud of his many decades of involvement with the Durham Toastmasters Club, to which he credits much of his success as a public speaker and community leader.
An avid golfer, Frank was a charter member of Willowhaven Country Club where he enjoyed a reputation as the “barefoot golfer.” He was a man with an indomitable wit, most often demonstrated in the verse he wrote for all occasions. Frank read voraciously and traveled extensively with his wife Bernie. A believer in fitness, he exercised daily throughout his life.
In lieu of flowers, friends may make a donation to the American Heart Association, the Durham chapter of the American Cancer Society, Duke Hospice, or a charity they hold dear.
A memorial service will be held at the Few Chapel at Croasdaile Village in Durham on Wednesday, October 5 at 3 p.m.
The family is being assisted in Durham by Clements Funeral Service, Inc.
Originally published in the
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