Vincent De Luca

Vincent "Enzo" De Luca, birth name Vincenzo Salvatore De Luca, was born December 9, 1931, in the town of Corigliano, in the province of Calabria, in southern Italy. He was the son of Anna Sanseverino, a homemaker, and Gerardo De Luca, who was a blacksmith. The oldest of four boys, Enzo began life during a dubious historical period of Italy. He was born under fascism and witnessed the horrors of World War II first-hand. A good student, Enzo excelled at European history and geography, which drew him into his lifelong love of stamp collecting from an early age. He also loved soccer, jazz, and playing the trumpet.

With the intent of paving the way for the rest of his immediate family, Enzo, like many Italians of the day, emigrated alone to Argentina at the age of 16, in 1948. He stayed mostly with an uncle who had previously emigrated to Argentina, taking any job he could get to make ends meet. For a time, Enzo was a professional singer under the RCA record label (frequently telling his sons how much girls loved him), in addition to being a shoemaker.

With the exception of a brief period in which Enzo's father, Gerardo, came to live with him in Argentina before eventually returning to Italy, the rest of Enzo's immediate family decided to stay in their native Italy, with Enzo being the sole De Luca to settle in Argentina.

In the late 1950s, he met Rosita, birth name Rosetta De Francisci, an attractive young woman who came to hear him sing at a nightclub in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The two began a courtship and eventually married in February of 1960. On June 13, 1961, Enzo and Rosita welcomed their first child to the world; Maurice, birth name Mauricio "Moe" Carmelo Antonio De Luca. Life for Enzo's small family in the early to mid 1960s proceeded contentedly with Enzo continuing as a shoemaker.

In 1967 with his family, Enzo emigrated once again; this time to Rochester, New York, in the United States of America. Enzo found work as an Electronic Technician at Rochester Radio. On April 28, 1969, they welcomed into the world the final member of their family, Alexander "Alex" Gerardo De Luca. Life continued on, in the freezing winters and humid summers of Rochester until 1977, when the family of four answered the irresistible call to move to sunny San Jose, California. Enzo soon found work as a Senior Test Analyzer at IBM corporation, where he eventually won IBM’s highest honor, the President’s Award, for one of his inventions. He continued at IBM for 15 years until his retirement in 1993.

In 1981, Enzo and Rosita were divorced, and Enzo continued living in San Jose. This new period of his life became one of Renaissance. Enzo developed his craft of thematic stamp collecting, eventually winning multiple awards for topics such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Castles. He became globally recognized and well respected in his field, with stacks of publications showcasing his work. He travelled often during this time, appearing at international stamp conventions and visiting the families of his brothers in Italy and his many friends.

Enzo enjoyed regular attendance at his Catholic parish, Church of The Ascension in Saratoga, California. He served as Usher for a period of time and enjoyed bringing his family to his parish dinner events and gatherings.

In the year 2000, he moved to Santa Clara, California, where he enjoyed tending to his herb garden and taking daily walks through the neighborhood. He spent his twilight years in comfortable retirement, with family and friends partaking in his generous meals and the never ending flow of soccer games, scrabble games, and stories.

In 1997 he welcomed his first daughter-in-law, Melanie Hancock (Moe), followed in 2002 with Catherine Capati (Alex). This opened the door to the final and greatest of his life's passions: that of being "Nonno" (Italian for grandpa), first on October 3, 2003 with Alex’s and Catherine's son Dante Capati De Luca followed by Moe’s and Melanie's son Casey Gage De Luca, born on January 11, 2006.

Enzo loved his family, his sons, his daughters-in-law, his grandsons, and his friends. He passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 2, 2025. He was a complicated man, but that just means there was so very much of life he absorbed in his 93 years.

A Funeral Mass for Vincent will be held Friday, March 28, 2025 at 11:00 AM at Church of the Ascension, 12033 Miller Ave, Saratoga, CA 95070. Family and friends are also invited to a Celebration of Life Reception at Lima Family Santa Clara Reception Hall, 466 N. Winchester Blvd, Santa Clara, CA 95050 at 1:00 PM. Burial will be held privately.