Obituary of Rocci Richard Cortese

In memory of Rocci Richard Cortese 98 Years April 28, 1918-July10, 2016 Vancouver WA Born in San Jose, California 98 years ago to Italian immigrants, as a child Rocci lived in New York and San Jose, CA. He lived through the Great Depression and as a child had to spend some time in orphanages due to family illnesses. His family settled in San Jose, California where he graduated high school. His great passion was baseball of which he played semi pro for years. As a young boy he met the Great Babe Ruth and used to sit at a neighbor’s porch waiting for the morning newspaper so he could read about the baseball games. As an adult he entered the Navy and during WWII he served on a troop carrier ship in the south pacific which brought him to many islands including Iwo Jima and Guam. After WWII he returned to California and worked for the National Can Corporation where he met his wife and was married for 63 years. He was promoted to Warehouse Foreman and moved his young family to Vancouver, WA where he retired from the company after 40 years. Rocci was a social butterfly as he returned to San Jose for nearly every High School class reunion into his 80’s. He was a lady’s man and took fashion cues from no one, still wearing his Italian style leather shoes until the end. He loved gambling the horse races, good wine, opera music, and growing perfect tomatoes. Rocci was happiest when all the family gathered for a good old fashioned spaghetti dinner. He was definitely the thread that held our family together. He was preceded in death by his wife Mary in 2011 and is survived by his grown children John, Roxanne, Richard, and many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Instead of flowers please do an act of kindness in Rocci’s name; after all it does not take fame or fortune to be remembered, only a kind heart. He will always be remembered as the man we called dad. Committal Service 11-11:30 am Monday August 1, 2016, Military Honors Willamette National Cemetery 11800 SE Mt. Scott Blvd. Portland OR