Andrew "Andy" F. Valente died in his home on July 23, 2018 in Red Hook, New York due to natural causes. He was 87 years old. Andy was born on August 4, 1930 on Staten Island, NY to immigrant parents from Ireland and Italy. He grew up an avid baseball player. After graduating from St. Peter's High School, he spent a year as a professional baseball player before moving on to work as a corrections officer, professional driver, and dance organizer. He also dedicated himself to the community and coached a basketball team at Mount Loretto Orphanage. During this period, Andy was drafted into the marines and served during the Korean War. At a party on the Jersey Shore, Andy met his future wife Elizabeth "Betty" Valente (nee McKenna). They married in 1964 and were raising three children by the early 1970s. The Valente family moved to Cairo, New York and ran The Forrest House resort in the late 1970s before settling in Rhinebeck, NY in 1982. Andy completed one of his life lifelong goals by getting a degree in social work from Marist College during this period and finished out his professional career working as a social worker at Holy Cross Residential Treatment Facility in Rhinecliff, ...[more]
Andy will be remembered for his dedication to his family, his ability to strike up a warm conversation, his love of golf and baseball, his appreciation of good salami sandwich, and much more. He is survived by his wife Elizabeth Valente of Red Hook, NY; daughter Jessica Beach of Red Hook, NY; son Nicholas Valente of Cheyenne, WY; son William Valente of Brooklyn, NY; sister Dorothy Reilly of New Jersey; and four grandchildren. A mass will be held at 12noon on Wednesday July 25, 2018 at St. Christopher's Church in Red Hook, NY.
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