Richard F Stoico

Richard Stoico, a loving husband, father, and grandfather, died Wednesday, June 17, 2020, at the age of 65.

Richard was born Nov. 3, 1954, in Boston, Mass., to Louis and Catherine (Fallavolita) Stoico of Lexington, the fifth of their seven children.

Richard was the longtime owner and operator of Cafe Luigi in Bedford, Mass. He opened the restaurant in 1988 and worked tirelessly for 28 years providing an enjoyable -- and affordable -- Italian dining experience to the many guests he and his staff served. He loved his employees, several of whom worked at the restaurant for nearly its entire existence.

Richard met his future wife, Carol Van Dolah, in 1983 at Lake Cheney in Kansas. They married a year later and gave birth to their first child, Kelsey Marie, in 1985 in Hutchinson, Kansas.

Richard, Carol and Kelsey moved back to Richard’s home state of Massachusetts in 1986 and settled in Concord. Their second child, Nicholas Eugene, was born in 1992. The family moved to Carlisle a year later, where they lived for 15 years. 

Richard grew up spending summers with his family in Meredith, N.H., on Lake Winnipesaukee. He was a strong water skier as a teenager, carving turns across the wake in the waters surrounding Meredith Neck in the 1960s and ‘70s. 

He continued visiting the lake with his own family, sharing with them a love for being on the water. Richard’s ideal summer days were spent sitting in a boat, floating on the lake while thumbing through the pages of the Boston Globe.

Richard was a family man. He and Carol hosted countless holiday parties at their home with extended family over the years. He always looked forward to having his siblings and their children over to their house, and he instilled in his own children the importance of maintaining strong relationships within a family.

Perhaps the most wonderful moments of Richard’s life were spent with his grandchildren. He loved each of them deeply and was blessed to meet his newest grandson just a couple of months before his passing.

Richard was a very proud graduate of the University of Kansas, where he earned a bachelors in business in 1977. He was a diehard Kansas Jayhawks basketball fan right up until his final days. He was also excited by the football program’s hiring of Les Miles as head coach, believing that he may be the one to turn the struggling program around.

Richard was, of course, a big Boston sports fan. As a teenager, he’d tune in to the “Sports Huddle” on WBZ radio on Sunday nights. Later on, through the 1990s and 2000s, WEEI was the only station he’d have on in his car. 

That’s not to say he didn’t also love music. Richard loved Motown, especially Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross. The last concert Richard saw was with Carol when Diana Ross performed in Fort Myers, Fla., in 2019.

Richard is survived by his wife, Carol, of Naples, Fla.; his daughter, Kelsey (Stoico) McIntosh, of Windham, N.H., and her husband, William, and their sons James, 9, Benjamin, 6, and William, 6 months; his son, Nicholas, of Cambridge, Mass.; his older brothers Robert, of Marco Island, Fla., and Louis, of Dallas; and his younger sisters, Catherine (Stoico) Smothermon, of Londonderry, N.H., and Carolyn (Stoico) Nole, of Ashland, Mass.

Richard was predeceased by his father, Louis, his mother, Catherine, and his older sisters, Marie (Stoico) Giaquinto and Linda (Stoico) Tropeano.

He also leaves behind several close friends from Lexington High and KU, as well as the countless friends and colleagues he met in the years since. 

A celebration of his life for family and friends will be held at a later date.