Obituary of Alexander F. Fridkis

Alexander F. Fridkis, a resident of the Town of Poughkeepsie and former resident of Beacon and Wappingers Falls, entered into rest Monday, June 15, 2015 at Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie. He was 93. Son of the late Frederick and Rebecca Mostovoy Fridkis, he was born July 26, 1921 in Manhattan. Al was a 1940 graduate of Wappingers Falls High School. He proudly served his country in the United States Army during World War II. He participated in the Battle of the Buldge with the 56th Field Artillery Battalion, 8th Infantry Division. He was honorably discharged as a 1st Lieutenant in December of 1945 after receiving numerous decorations including the Bronze Star and the European African Middle Eastern Service Medal. He married his high school sweetheart, the former Louise Hubner, on October 23, 1943 at Zion Episcopal Church in Wappingers Falls. Mrs. Fridkis preceded him in death on February 20, 2012. Al worked for twenty-nine years with IBM; retiring as a Senior Associate Forecaster in 1977. He was a member of Zion Episcopal Church, serving on three different vestries. He was a life member of SW Johnson Engine Company No. 2, a former member of the Oddfellows in Wappingers Falls and former member of the VFW in Wappingers Falls. He was also a member of the IBM Quarter Century Club and the IBM Retirees. In 2004, he was inducted into the Thomas D. Macrini Sports Hall of Fame for the Wappingers Central School District. Al was a dedicated volunteer, donating his time to many different organizations. He was a former board member of the Mid-Hudson Savings Bank, volunteer at Castle Point, former member of the Village of Wappingers Falls Recreation Committee as well as many other worthwhile causes. He is survived by his daughters, Anne Kite and Roger Vaillancourt of Poughkeepsie, Barbara Andujar and her husband, Curtis of Beacon; his sister, Sylvia Smith of Virginia; his grandchildren, Aaron Andujar, Benjamin Andujar, Alexa Andujar and Avi Epstein, and Adrienne Johannes and her husband, Phill; his three great-grandchildren, Ava, Lennon and Rowen. In addition to his wife of sixty-eight years, Louise Fridkis, he is predeceased by his foster parents, William and Nettie Vermilya; brothers, Norman, Martin and Bernard; sister, Muriel Baker; foster brother and sister, Robert Vermilya and Vera Sears. Family will receive friends on Saturday, June 20, 2015 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Straub, Catalano & Halvey Funeral Home, 55 East Main Street, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590. A funeral service will be held at 1:30 p.m. at the funeral home with Mother Deborah Magdalene officiating. Interment will follow in the family plot at Wappingers Rural Cemetery, West Main Street, Wappingers Falls. Memorial donations may be made to Zion Episcopal Church, 12 Satterlee Place, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590, American Kidney Fund, 11921 Rockville Pike, Suite 300, Rockville, MD 20852, or a charity of your choice. For directions or to send the family a personal condolence, please visit our website at www.StraubCatalanoHalvey.com.