Alexander Buccola
Alexander N. Buccola of Noyac, who worked in customer service at Cirillo’s I.G.A. Market in Amagansett and also as a pet sitter and an estate manager, died of cancer on July 17 at his brother’s house in Goodview, Va. He was 67.
Born on Feb. 2, 1951, in Jamaica, Queens, to Nancy and Tony Buccola, he grew up in Sag Harbor, graduating from St. Andrew’s School, Southampton High School, and Suffolk County Community College.
“He was an old hippie, he lived a very simple life, and everybody, even complete strangers, loved him,” his sister, Pauline Brockway, said.
Mr. Buccola started a pet-sitting service more than 35 years ago and discovered that animals, too, had an affinity for him. Another side job in estate management developed because, said his sister, he was a true handyman and because people trusted him.
In his free time, he liked to bike and was a devoted hiker. During one memorable excursion, he and a friend backpacked to the Continental Divide in Montana’s Glacier National Park. They wore bells on their shoes so as not to startle grizzly bears. He also hiked New Hampshire’s White Mountains and Navajo Mountain in Utah, among others.
In addition to Ms. Brockway, who lives in Sag Harbor, he is survived by a brother, Dominick Buccola, of Goodview, Va. Seven nieces and nephews survive as well, as do seven great-nieces and nephews.
The family has planned a memorial gathering on Sept. 8 near the North Haven end of Long Beach in Sag Harbor; fliers are posted in the I.G.A. welcoming all those who knew him. Yellow balloons will designate the spot.