Obituary of Francis Joseph Riley

U.S. Army Veteran Francis Joseph Riley, Jr. was born on July 22, 1928 at St. Vincents Hospital in Bridgeport, CT and passed away on Thursday, November 8, 2012 at CT Hospice, Branford. He was the firstborn of the late Francis Joseph Riley, Sr. and Alice Griffin Riley. His siblings include the late John Riley, the late Rosemary Smith, Joan Fries, Ann Candela, Alice Pulatie, Jim Riley and Paul Riley. Frank served three years in the regular Army U.S. Signal Corps during World War II. During those three years he was stationed in Ft. Monmouth NJ, Guam, Japan and Ft. Louis WA. He was honorably discharged from the Army as Staff Sargent. He then attended St. Edwards Seminary in Seattle where he was ordained to the Minor Orders of the Catholic Church. After seven years, he left St. Edwards and returned to the Bodine Corp. in Bridgeport, CT, where he retired as Senior Vice President in 1990. Following his retirement, he was asked by the governments of Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Thailand, Brazil and Argentina to create trade schools for manufacturing technicians. He is the author of three textbooks on manufacturing engineering. He was elected as an officer of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers in Dearborn, MI and served as president from 1989 -1990. Subsequently he participated in the development of the SME Education Foundation to provide scholarships for manufacturing engineering students. An ardent sailor, he owned several boats, was Commodore of Black Rock Yacht Club and a life member of the Fayerweather Yacht Club. He taught navigation to the U.S. Power Squadron and was the navigator in sailing races to Bermuda. Frank is survived by his wife Erica Segala Riley, his children: Sally Gilbert and her husband Gary, Kathleen Mitchell and her husband Thomas, the late Patricia DAmico and her husband John and Major Timothy Riley and his wife Kim, and their mother Mary Lou Jennings Riley, 11 grandchildren, Lindsay, Brittany, Ryan, Christopher, Susan, Megan, Peter, Juliana, Maxine, Cody and Kasey, three great grandsons, Colby, William and Owen as well as many nieces and nephews. In Funeral Information Funeral services will take place on Wednesday, November 14, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. in the Abriola Parkview Funeral Home, 419 White Plains Road, Trumbull, and at 11:00 a.m. in St. Marks Church, Stratford for a Mass of Christian Burial. Interment will be private. Relatives and friends may call on Tuesday from 4-8 p.m. Donations Information In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made payable to Sea Scout Ship #110, in memory of Francis J. Riley Jr., through the funeral director.