Obituary of Andrew J Marinucci

Andrew J. Marinucci died Wednesday, January 18, 2012, at Morristown Medical Center in Morristown. He was 89. Born in New Brunswick he has lived in North Brunswick since 1950. He had worked as a construction superintendent for Gushin Construction in New Brunswick and Reider and Associates in South Brunswick before his retirement. In that capacity, he oversaw the construction of several office buildings and housing developments in the New Brunswick area. Mr. Marinucci rose to the rank of technical sergeant in the Army Air Corps during World War II where he was a flight engineer and a tail gunner in the B-25 "Mitchell" medium bomber. He flew 47 combat missions, was forced to bail out twice, the second time captured by the Germans in Italy. He became a prisoner of war for nine months in 1944-45. His internment began in Stalag Luft 4D in southern Poland, and ended in a 4 month 500 km forced march before his liberation. His war experience has been recorded by the Rutgers University Oral History Society of which he was a member. He was also a founder and member of the St. Sebastian Post #405 of the Catholic War Veterans in New Brunswick, and active in Ex-POW affairs. He was a communicant of St. Mary of Mount Virgin R.C. Church in New Brunswick where he was extremely active in parish life including maintenance and decorating of the church and school and running the weekly church bingo. He was a member of the church's Holy Name Society, the Booster Club, and was an avid Rutgers Football and Sports Fan. His wife Fannie Rinaldi Marinucci died in 2009. Surviving are his son Dr. Andrew C. Marinucci of Mercerville; two daughters - Diane Marinucci of South River and Eileen Rocco of Dayton; two grandchildren - Lisa Rocco of North Brunswick and Nicholas Rocco of Dayton; and nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be 9:45 AM Tuesday from Selover Funeral Home, 555 Georges Road, North Brunswick followed by a 10:30 AM Mass at St. Mary of Mount Virgin Church in New Brunswick. Interment will follow in Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veteran's Memorial Cemetery in Arneytown. Friends and relatives may call at the funeral home Monday from 3 PM to 6 PM only.