Luke R. Ocone

Luke Ralph Ocone, 91, of Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, died peacefully in his home on December 8, 2016. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ariadna (Rena) Ocone, children Daniel, Anthony, Steven, and Anne, eight grandchildren, and sisters Anne Tucker and Mary Agnello and their families. Luke was a loving and generous husband, father, and grandfather, known for his delicious cooking, fine craftsman skills, and sense of humor.

Luke was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to immigrant parents from Italy, Joseph and Catherine Ocone, who then moved the family to Queens, New York. Working with his father, Luke learned the fine carpentry and construction skills he applied throughout his life toward making comfortable homes for himself, Rena, and his children. He also could repair large and small appliances, motors, cars, and more. His interests were unbounded and he never stopped learning.

After graduating from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1943, Luke entered the Navy, serving as a Pharmacist’s Mate First Class on a troop carrier, the USS Thurston, in the Pacific. He participated in the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

Following the 2nd World War, he attended Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. He then obtained a PhD in Chemistry from Penn State, where he met and married

Ariadna Shugaevsky, also a chemistry student. He worked a few years at Dupont in New Jersey and then spent the rest of his career at Pennwalt (now Elf Atochem) in Philadelphia.

After retiring, he continued researching and working. He was always inventing, and a number of patents are held under his name. With his wife, he was a world traveler. Luke loved music and camping, reading and writing, making things and fixing things. But most of all, he loved family.