Donald J. Muraca

Longtime Staten Islander Donald J. Muraca, 88, of Dongan Hills, a devoted family man who is remembered for his flair for telling jokes and doing impressions, died Saturday in the Richmond University Medical Center, West Brighton.

Born in Lowell, Mass., he moved to Brooklyn in the early 1930s. He attended school at the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin in Mount Loretto, Pleasant Plains, and returned to Brooklyn after graduation.

Mr. Muraca served in the U.S. Army during World War II in the 365th Field Artillery Battalion. He saw action in both the European and Asian-Pacific theaters, and was honorably discharged in 1946.

He and Louise A. Riggio met at a social at St. Finbar R.C. Church in Brooklyn in 1963. They fell in love, and after marrying in 1965, moved to Bensonhurst. They settled in Dongan Hills in 1971.

Mr. Muraca worked as a truck driver and industrial scale mechanic in Manhattan for several years, then went to work for the city Sanitation Department in 1965. He retired in 1985, after 20 years on the job.

He treasured time spent with his family.

“He taught us how to field ground balls, how to ride bikes, how to throw a spiral,” said his son, Donald M. Muraca.

Family members recalled him as a jokester who loved to do impressions of his favorite singer, Perry Como, and his favorite entertainer, Al Jolson.

“His goal in life was to always make you laugh,” his son said.

Mr. Muraca was also an avid fan of the New York Mets.

He was a former parishioner of St. Sylvester’s R.C. Church, Concord, and a parishioner of St. Ann’s R.C. Church, Dongan Hills.

Surviving, along with Louise, his wife of 46 years, and his son, Donald M., are his son, Jack L.; a sister, Rita Amoroso, and three grandchildren.

The funeral will be Wednesday from the Casey Funeral Home, Castleton Corners, with a mass at 10 a.m. in St. Ann’s Church. Burial will follow in Resurrection Cemetery, Pleasant Plains.