Luciano “Lou” Fritz, 85, a longtime resident of Hurleyville, N.Y., died peacefully December 7, in hospice at the River Glen Health Care Center in Southbury, after a long illness. He was born in Barcis, Italy, on November 29, 1933, the son of the late Amerigo and Emilia (Bucco) Fritz.

Mr Fritz’s memory will live on and be cherished through his daughter, Luisa Fritz-Bolinsky, and her husband, Connecticut State Representative Mitch Bolinsky of Newtown; his son, John Fritz, and his wife, Patricia, of Virginia Beach, Va.; his three grandchildren, Rachel and Matthew Bolinsky of Newtown and Rosina Fritz of Virginia Beach, Va.; his sister-in-law, Nilda Fritz of Flushing, N.Y.; his beloved in-laws and long-time neighbors Olinto and Molly Fassetta of Hurleyville, N.Y.; as well as his several nieces and nephews, who survive him. Family remaining in Italy will also miss him.

His loving wife of 53 years, Zoira (Fassetta) Fritz, and his brother, James Fritz, predeceased him.

Mr Fritz came to the United States as a young tween after World War II and grew up in College Point, Queens, N.Y. He was a US Air Force Veteran who served our country bravely during the Korean War from 1953 to 1957.

He married Zoira (Fassetta) Fritz in Barcis, Italy, on January 16, 1955, and they raised two children, Luisa Fritz-Bolinsky and John Fritz.

Mr Fritz was a talented mason, working many years as a self-employed union contractor before becoming employed as a mason for the New York State Department of Corrections. There, he worked to maintain the facility and property therein while also teaching the trade to inmate-apprentices at the Neversink Correctional Facility until his retirement.

He was an accomplished hunter and fisherman. Mr Fritz won the “Biggest Buck in Sullivan County” award in 1992 and also hunted rabbits with his faithful beagles. Fishing, especially for trout, was not only a sport for him, but also a therapy. Suffering from severe headaches at times, a jaunt through a stream, casting his fishing line, always served to heal him, both body and soul, making him feel renewed.

Visitation will take place Wednesday, December 12, from 10 am to 2 pm, at Colonial-Ramsay Funeral Home, 275 South Main Street, Liberty, New York, with funeral services at 2 pm in the funeral home. Interment, with military honors, will follow at the Liberty Cemetery in Liberty, N.Y.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that mourners consider a donation in the memory of Luciano Fritz to the American Diabetes Association at diabetes.org or by phone at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383).

Arrangements are under the direction of Colonial-Ramsay Funeral Home, 845-292-7160 or 845-434-7363, colonialramsayfuneralhome.com.