On Saturday, February 10, Brother Nicholas Picciano died after an extended illness. Brother Nick began his career at St. Cecilia's School in Brooklyn and then devoted many years to both La Salle, Providence and La Salle, Oakdale before moving to St. Peter's in Staten Island in 2001.
An affable Brother who enjoyed cuisine and conversation, Bro. Nick is remembered for many acts of kindness over his career in education. He is survived by his three sisters, Sr. Rosalind Picciano, Dorothy Bernice and Joan Picciano.
His death coincided with the strongest storm of the season, making it difficult for people to attend the wake, the funeral and the burial. At the funeral Mass on Wednesday evening, February 14, Brother Anthony Scotto's eulogy had to be read by Bro. Patrick Bradley as Brother Anthony could not get to Staten Island in the fierce, icy storm.
In his eulogy, Bro. Anthony reflected, in part, "In 1960 when he went to Narragansett, Nick seemed like an ordinary high school kid who wanted to follow his dream of following Jesus more closely as a religious. But it didn't take long for the Brothers who lived with him to find out that Nick was far from being just ordinary. He never thought of himself as an athlete, but he thought of himself as a good if not great cook. He never thought of himself as a great intellectual but he mastered the Spanish language so well that he was able to converse, read and write the language fluently and even spent two years living and working in Madrid, Spain. He never thought of himself as a great leader but that never stopped him from volunteering to take over any job he was asked to do and he did them very well.
"It should be interesting in heaven right now as Nick goes around meeting the original Apostles. They're probably telling him about all the fish they caught - and Nick is probably telling them how to cook them!
"One of the last things that he did was to send everyone his personal Christmas greeting. It now seems like his final address. Not a good-bye but a thank-you. He made it clear that he appreciated all that his sisters Rosalind, Dorothy and Joan had done for him, not only during his illness but throughout his life. He thanked the Brothers ... especially the St. Peter's Community for their patience, their care and their love. He had told many people how much he appreciated all that Brother James Kelly and all the Brothers had done for him. His Christmas greeting was filled with optimism and cheerfulness. He was not morbid but instead looked forward to being back on his feet once again soon.
"I tell you these few anecdotes so that you could see not only the ordinary person that Nick was but the extraordinary person that Nick was. Like the Apostles, once Nick answered Jesus's call to follow Him in a special way, he set out for these past 46 years to prove to Jesus and truly mean it when he said on Saturday morning, February 10, 2007 at 10:15 am, "Yes Lord, You know that I love You."
Thank you to Bro. Anthony Scotto for his beautiful reflections and to all those who were part of Bro. Nick's life. After a wake and funeral on Staten Island, his body was brought to Narragansett on Thursday, February 15 for burial. May he rest in eternal peace.
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