Fred W. Erikson

Erikson, Fred W.
SCHODACK - It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Fred W. Erikson, 87 of Schodack, who died on May 25, 2023, while on a family scuba vacation on Bonaire island in the Netherlands Antilles. Fred was the husband of Phyllis (Ricciardi) Erikson.
He was born to Swedish immigrants, Anna "Tootsie" Erikson and Fredrik "Papa" Erikson, during the Depression on Staten Island. He grew up there with his sister, Irene Johnson and brother, Rolf Erikson, who both predeceased him.
Fred joined the Marine Corps in 1958 after obtaining his Bachelor of Arts degree at City College of New York (now CUNY). He began dating Phyllis and their daily correspondence blossomed into a lifelong love affair, culminating in 1961 in a marriage lasting 62 years.
Fred was awarded his Master's degree while teaching high school on Staten Island, where he founded and coached the school swim team. The growing family moved north to Colonie, and Fred taught at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he earned his Ph.D. in psycholinguistics.
In 1973, Fred moved his family to West Stockbridge, Mass., whereas a summer camp owner and director at Camp Kingsmont with two of his close friends, Lloyd "Doc" Appleton and Dick Rohrbacher, Fred and his family all loved planning, working and running a successful program for the boys who came every summer. Fred particularly enjoyed his ad hoc role as entertainment coordinator, selecting weekly movies and curating silly songs to be played over the camp loudspeaker.
1976 brought Fred and his family to Schodack, where he settled in as an enthusiastic supporter of his wife's dream of becoming an attorney. In between coaching the Albany YMCA swim team and teaching at Literacy Volunteers, he was chief cook and bottle washer for their five children until Phyllis graduated from Albany Law School in 1980. Phyllis' legal career at G.E. Schenectady and Waterford eventually sent them to Europe for four years on what Fred called "the Eriksons' European vacation."
Fred was a family man first, a scholar, a teacher, a carpenter, a handyman, a traveler, a swimmer, a camp athletic director, a Viking, a quirky comic, a mentor, a skilled read-to-me grandpa (who did all of the voices), a scuba diver, a sous chef, a Mets fan, a dishwasher... he was anything and everything to us all. He was a man with no sharp edges who taught by encouraging, helping, and supporting in his many roles. He was a voracious reader and instilled a love of reading and learning in all of his children and grandchildren. He was unconcerned about appearances and by his example, taught all of his family to be humble and modest; to pursue the inner life. He let everyone know that the sky was the limit; that we could be anything. Kindred spirits recognized his uniqueness and truly appreciated and were drawn to him. His family was larger than genetics because he accepted everyone into the fold for who they were, not for what they could bring. Fred taught us to look for beauty in the moment by his quiet presence, to question our first assumptions, never to judge another because they may be fighting their own difficult battle, and to try to fix something before throwing it out. He showed us that a man's love is implacable, solid, unyielding, unwavering and even stubborn.
As a father, Fred taught his children: (1) have lots of babies even if you can't afford them at the time; (2) never pass up an opportunity to make a very bad joke; (3) there is no such thing as women's work and men's work, only work; (4) always support those people around you, no matter what their individual goal is; (5) raise your daughters so that they are flabbergasted when they are treated as "less than"; (6) wear odd clothes occasionally; it keeps those around you guessing and lightens the mood for your children; (7) never expect gifts but be quite pleased when you receive one; (8) always eat your vegetables so you can grow up to be big and strong and fierce-looking like your father; (9) life isn't a destination; enjoy the journey.
Fred and Phyllis loved to bring the entire family on vacations, and the family saw the world under his tutelage. Sometimes a special dive trip with a grandchild or two, sometimes "en masse" with 20 or 30 of us. He died on his last trip, in his wife's arms, with his children holding his hands, and his grandchildren around him.
He is survived by his wife, Phyllis (Ricciardi) Erikson; his children: Laura Erikson (David Cogan), Dana Salazar (Claude Salazar), Randi Nolan (Paul Nolan), Phyllis Ann Van Amburgh (Paul Van Amburgh) and Frederik Erikson (Emily (Hundt) Erikson); his grandchildren: Katie Sutliff (Rob), Beau Piorkowski (Amye Piorkowski), Erik Piorkowski (Jackie), Emmalynn Salazar Blake (Daniel Blake), Lauren Nolan (Joey), Paul Edward Nolan (Lola) and Sam Nolan (Lorelei), Grace VanAmburgh, Vincent VanAmburgh, Maggie VanAmburgh, Oliver VanAmburgh and Ruby Van Amburgh, Lucas Erikson, Ava Erikson and Adrian Erikson; and his great-grandson, Bennett Piorkowski. He is also survived by his mother-in-law, Margaret (DellaBadia) Ricciardi; his sister-in-law, Frances (Ricciardi) Saraceno; his brother-in-law, Louis Saraceno, and many nieces, nephews, and extended family spanning five generations.
"Lo, there, Do I see my father; Lo, There, Do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers; Lo There, Do I see the line of my people back to the beginning! Lo, they do call to me, they bid me take my place among them in the Halls of Valhalla! Where the brave may live Forever!"
Friends and family may call on Tuesday from 4 - 7 p.m. and Wednesday from 10 - 11:30 a.m. in the Wm. J. Rockefeller Funeral Home Inc., 165 Columbia Tpke., Rensselaer. Please join us for a celebration of life that will follow at 12 p.m. after a procession to the family's home at 25 County Rt 7, Nassau, reception will follow.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Dr. Fred W. Erikson Fund at Albany Law School, in honor of his indispensable support of his wife, daughter, son, granddaughter and grandson, all alumni of ALS, the Imagination Library, and Literacy Volunteers of Albany.