Dennis S. Cassidy

Using a blue grease pencil, William Paul Cassidy marked the many routes he took as a book salesman with his wife, Donna Elizabeth Cassidy (Davis) and their newly born son, Dennis Stephen Cassidy, on the 1933 Texaco Road Map of Missouri. The dark lines crisscrossing the state and trailing off the borders to places beyond, literally trace the beginning of a new life to be shaped by the Great Depression and form the background of a stoic soul whose curiosity and energy drove his days. After years of different Catholic and military boarding schools and homeschooling born of necessity, Dennis, along with his mother and two younger sisters, Donna and Kathleen, were settled in Sarasota, Florida during his teens. Remembering these years fondly, he would recall times along the shell roads of Siesta Key with his friends to go fishing and absorbing the tales and friendships with the children of circus families during the heyday of the Ringling Brothers Circus while in their wintering grounds. After graduating from Sarasota High School in 1952, he started his freshman year at Florida State University (FSU) while also joining their Flying High Circus as a juggler and performer on the Rola Rola. University studies were interrupted to enlist in the military and eventually find him in Europe with the 88th Infantry Division of the US Army and for a time in Trieste, Italy as part of TRUST (Trieste United States Troops). He then worked as a civilian for the US Army in the Panama Canal Zone before returning to FSU to graduate with a degree in Geology. During more studies for a graduate degree at FSU, he was recruited to work full time in their geology department.
This period at the geology department was dynamic in the early sixties and beyond as he helped oversee the burgeoning sedimentary core library. He eventually became the Curator of the Antarctic Marine Geology Research Facility and Core Library at FSU until his retirement in 1991. He gave his all as curator through his meticulous nature of organizing, exacting standards for himself and others to care for valuable core and rock samples obtained with great effort and cost from continental and suboceanic marine sediment drilling expeditions. Outside of the contract grant for the Facility, as he called it, he also "...built a virtually complete library of publications resulting from scientific use of the core collection, and he managed the creation and publication of beautifully crafted core description volumes that document the cores and promote the scientific uses of the collection beyond those envisioned by the original collectors.", as described in a letter from Walter Massey, director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1991. The NSF awarded him the Meritorious Public Service Award for his long support of Antarctic research and his efforts enabling scientists to develop an unprecedented understanding of the geology of our planet's Southern Ocean area. The NSF, with the International Committee on Antarctic Names, also named a mountain in Antarctica after him, Mount Cassidy, at 6,289 feet above sea level in Antarctica's Olympus Range. Anyone who knew Dennis would know he would not be too impressed that we put this in his obituary.
Another part of Dennis' time at FSU and beyond could be summarized by his joy in helping others. From the numerous graduate students to the lost new student on campus, he was always willing to go above and beyond to ease the path for those who needed a little extra care. He loved meeting people from all around the country and the world and maintained many long friendships from that time.
Dennis' activities after retirement originated from his love and knowledge of classical music and his many friendships within the Greek community of Tallahassee. He belonged and served on the board of the Albany Concert Association in Albany, GA and belonged to the Thomasville Entertainment Foundation in Thomasville, GA and was a member of AHEPA, American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association, in Tallahassee, FL, all for many years.
Dennis loved reading, long walks, usually on FSU's campus, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge or any number of state parks or beaches. His greatest joy, however, was the love and companionship he shared for 58 years with his wife, Fabiola, and the family they had together. He adored his grandchildren and loved his children's spouses as his own. He was one of a kind and will be missed by all who loved and knew him.
Dennis is survived by his wife, Fabiola B. Cassidy; children, Maria LeVarn (Marc), Patrick Cassidy (Cindy); granddaughters Marina and Silvia LeVarn and Zandra Cassidy. He is also survived by his sister, Kathleen Gowdy, and niece, Stephanie Anderson. Dennis, in addition to his parents, was predeceased by his sister Donna Elizabeth Anderson and nephew, Rob Anderson.
There will be a funeral mass at St. Thomas Moore Co-Cathedral in Tallahassee, FL on April 3, 2025 at 11:00 am., immediately followed by a private ceremony at the Tallahassee National Cemetery. Friends and family are invited to visit in the social hall of the Holy Mother of God Greek Orthodox Church in Tallahassee starting at 3:30 pm.
Niki Carney of Bevis Funeral Home (www.bevisfh.com or 850-385-2193) is assisting the Cassidy family with their arrangements.