Frederick W. Cotter

Frederick W. Cotter, 89, of Milford, beloved husband of Donna Byers Cotter, passed away peacefully on January 12, 2019. Fred was born in New Haven, CT, to the late Frederick and Helen (Waters) Cotter.

Fred grew up in Shelton, CT and often shared stories of growing up with his friends in the Valley. This same group entered the army together at the end of WWII. As a sergeant in the army, he was sent to occupied Japan where he supervised a security detail. He was then sent into Korea as a courier, where he said the bullets were just as real. He was a graduate of St. John College Prep in Washington, D.C. and The Wharton Business School of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in finance. After the army, Fred married Marie English Cotter, lived in Stratford and worked as an engineer for Remington Arms. He also worked at C.W. Blakeslee and Sons in New Haven as a facilities manager and then became Director of Physical Plant at Fairfield University for several decades. He was later married to Donna Byers Cotter and resided in Milford, a town he loved deeply, for 30 years.

In addition to his loving wife, Donna, Fred is survived by his children, Fred Cotter and Sr. Celeste Cotter, CSJ; his brother, Robert Cotter; his wife Donna’s children, Marise, Stewart and Ned Nazzaro; and his former wife, Marie Cotter.  

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday, January 17, 2019 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary Church (Precious Blood Parish), 70 Gulf St., Milford, CT (MEET DIRECTLY AT CHURCH). Burial with Military Honors will follow at Mt. St. Peter Cemetery, 219 New Haven Ave., Derby, CT 06418. Friends and family are invited to call on Wednesday, January 16, 2019 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the CODY-WHITE FUNERAL HOME, 107 Broad St., Milford, CT. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Congregation of St. Joseph 1515 W. Ogden Ave., LaGrange Park, IL 60526 or at www.csjoseph.org or to any local shelter for cats.

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