My father died on Thursday.
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My father died on Thursday. Here's a version of the post I put on Instagram, sharing a bit more about his (and thus my) life...Wanted to share here too since this is a unique community. ️
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It is with great sadness that I share that my father, John R. Quagliarello, passed away yesterday in New York City. He was surrounded by all 3 of his children, my stepmother Lolly and brother in law Dan. We helped him transition as gracefully and painlessly as possible; there were so many tears and some laughs too as we recalled our favorite memories and the things we loved about him. Upon learning that hearing is one of the last things to go, we played music from his beloved Beatles and Paul Simon. My daughter Stella texted me Sufjan Stevens’ “John My Beloved” during all this and we played that too.My heart swells with so much love for my family, but especially my sister Bianca, who did the most exquisite job of managing the medical team, while explaining what was happening to us, while processing her own grief, while whispering to my dad what he needed to hear. She told him he can finally rest, there was nothing to do now, and soon he’ll be back in Montauk, his favorite place in the world. After a lifetime of working so hard, literally running himself into the ground, followed by an excruciating battle with Alzheimer’s, I want this peace for him too.
I don’t think I’d be who I am today without my dad. He loved to read and pored over the newspapers every day, which got me into writing and culture. He was a quiet, serious person but also had a delightful sense of humor — classic SNL, Larry David & Monty Python make me think of him. He was fascinated with the mafia & adored The Sopranos. He started running when he was 40, and ran several marathons. And then the sports! Jets, Rangers, Knicks, Mets…I still find solace just hearing the background noise of games on the TV. It tells me I’m home and so are people I love. He would be beyond proud to know his son Jack works for the NFL.
Even though it’s a pain to spell, I’m proud to keep the name Quagliarello (“little quail”) alive and for the daily reminder of this man. It also tells the story of Italian immigrants who came to the US with very little, worked their tails off to send their son to college (a first) and beamed with pride over what he became.
I love you, dad. Rest in peace.
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Colin Devroereplied to Mia Quagliarello last edited by
@miaq I’m sorry for your loss. Great photos.
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@miaq I'm so sorry for your loss, Mia ️
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Mia Quagliarelloreplied to Colin Devroe last edited by
@cdevroe Thank you, Colin!
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@quillmatiq Thank you, Anuj!
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Jon Mitchellreplied to Mia Quagliarello last edited by
@miaq may his memory be for blessing, Mia 🫀
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Mia Quagliarelloreplied to Jon Mitchell last edited by
@jon Thank you, Jon. I love this saying.
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Elena Rossini ⁂replied to Mia Quagliarello last edited by
@miaq Oh Mia I'm so sorry for your loss. What a moving post you wrote. Sending you and your whole family a big hug ️
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Mia Quagliarelloreplied to Elena Rossini ⁂ last edited by
@_elena Thank you, Elena.
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Stefan Bohacekreplied to Mia Quagliarello last edited by
@miaq He sounds like an amazing father and a person. I'm very sorry for your loss, and wish you and the rest of your family all the best!
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Mia Quagliarelloreplied to Stefan Bohacek last edited by
@stefan Thank you, Stefan! Appreciate you taking the time to write this