By John C. O'Connell
Michael L. DeNicolo, a Valley Stream resident since 1963 and dedicated servant to the village community all that time, died Sunday. He had been one to whom many turned for help, and none were turned away.
DeNicolo, who had a history of heart problems, had been scheduled for pre-surgical testing on Wednesday of last week before a cardiac catherization procedure on Thursday. His condition on arrival Wednesday, however, led to immediate hospitalization in the intensive care unit. His heart condition worsened throughout the next several days and he died Sunday morning at Winthrop-University Medical Center. He would have been 80 years old in May.
According to his good friend, Auxiliary Police Chief Joseph Carbonette, DeNicolo had a career as a carpet installer and volunteered with the Valley Stream Auxiliaries for decades, as well as serving as a code enforcer. He had retired, briefly, from code enforcement to move to Florida. After about two months, he came home.
"His life was here," Carbonette said. "He came back home. This was his life. There were people he wanted to help here. He was lost down there."
DeNicolo rose to the rank of deputy inspector with the Auxiliary Police in 1986.
"Mike would take the shirt off his back for anybody. Anybody ever had any problems he sat down and listened to anyone who needed him, and if he could do anything for them, he did it. No matter who it was, he put himself aside for anybody else in need. That's the type of guy he was," Carbonette said. "In the end, he was Mr. Valley Stream. He had a nice life, in that what he wanted to do, he did it, and he did it here in Valley Stream. He was like a brother to me. We did everything together, went everywhere together. We were very, very, very close. Thank God he only suffered for a very short time. He wasn't bed-ridden. That would have hurt him so much more."
DeNicolo was predeceased by his wife, Mary. He is survived by his daughter, Mary Ann Hill, his son, Joseph and wife, Jeanette; his grandchildren Christopher, Jennifer and Alexis; and his sister, Angie Conti, and brother, Dominick.
"You could not have a better friend than Mike DeNicolo," said Vincent Ang, the village clerk. "He was one of the most thoughtful and considerate people I've ever known. I just can't imagine what Valley Stream's going to be like without him."
Ang knew him for a long time. "I can't say enough about him, how kind he always was. This hasn't been easy for me. I had a real rough time when I came in here yesterday and looked at his desk. I was just on the phone with him over the weekend. I just can't believe he's gone," Ang said.
"All of us here in Village Hall are going to miss him." Ang said. "He made everyone here feel special, and this has been a sad, sad place."
Mary Ann Cahill knew DeNicolo for all the 25 years she was a crossing guard on Rockaway Avenue and knew him for 10 years before that. "He was unique," Cahill said. "He was very generous and always so nice to everybody. When I was a crossing guard, he would always be there for me when the cars or trucks would double park. I'd just have to look at him and point and he'd get them out of the way so the children would be safe."
Always seeing if he could help
Her husband, Mayor Edward Cahill, knew him for many years as well. "The
village, including myself, was shocked
and saddened by Mike's passing away. He was a wonderful human being who treated people nicely. He had a great rapport with people. Even when he would serve a summons, he'd speak to the people with respect, never antagonistic, seeing if he could help them.
"Vinny [Ang] and I had talked to him on the phone Thursday in the hospital and Mike said he wanted to have that procedure Thursday and be back to work Monday. That's the way he was. His spirits were great.
"On past occasions Mike had told me that when it was his time, he wanted to go quickly, not linger on," Cahill recalled. "He said he had a full life, over 79 years, raised his family, worked in the village that he loved. He was a great person, a great loss to the village, and personally a special loss to Mary Ann and myself. He was a great friend."
Board of Elections commissioner and former mayor John DeGrace went to visit DeNicolo on Saturday evening in the hospital, perhaps the last visitor to be there with him.
DeGrace knew him for over 40 years. "Mike DeNicolo epitomizes what it means to be a volunteer and a civil servant. He gave unselfishly of himself to all of those who knew him and didn't know him. He will be truly missed, more than anyone can imagine. He was there for everyone; he just helped everybody, anybody, it didn't matter what the problem was.
"When my mother had a stroke he was at the hospital just about every day. That's the kind of person he was," DeGrace said. "He was a good, good friend and it's very difficult to lose someone like Mike."
"His passing is a great loss to the village," said Hempstead Town Councilman James Darcy, Valley Stream's former mayor and assemblyman. "He really cared about Valley Stream, both as a dedicated code enforcer and through his work in the auxiliary police."
Joe Locoteta, president of Valley Stream's Civilian Patrol, knew DeNicolo for 20 years. "We worked together on so many things. Mike was one of the nicest, sweetest persons you could find," Locoteta said. "He was always there if anyone needed him. Every time I was sick, he made sure he would visit me, even if he had to go out of his way.
"He was a real friend," Locoteta said. "I will sincerely miss him. My wife, Dorothy, always got a smile and a hug and a kiss from him. I am sure he is resting in the arms of our Lord."
Mike DeNicolo was waked at Moore Funeral Home Tuesday and Wednesday. A Mass of Christian Burial was scheduled for Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at Holy Name of Mary RC Church, with interment at St. John's cemetery, Middle Village.
