Harry Warren Voccola, born June 27, 1940, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to Harry and Elizabeth Voccola, passed away peacefully Oct. 7, 2024, with his three sons by his side. He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Nancy.
Harry is survived by his sons, Mark (wife Jamie), Fred, and John (wife Maureen). He cherished his role as a grandfather to Mark and Jamie’s four children, Grace, Rose, William and Kathryn, as well as John and Maureen’s two daughters, Delaney and Morgan. He is also survived by his sisters, Janet Sturk, wife of Rudy, and Susan Richardson, wife of Harry.
Harry was predeceased by his brother Robert.
Harry was raised in Bridgeport where he attended St. Cyril and Methodists School. Harry earned the Bellarmine Scholarship to attend Fairfield Preparatory School. After graduation, he attended Fairfield University and earned a Bachelor of Science in physics. He later pursued his master’s degree in Phoenix, Arizona, before serving in the Army, where he was a nuclear weapons specialist until his honorable discharge.
After his military service, Harry began what would prove to be an incredible career spanning military, government, private sector and civic accomplishments. In each stage in his career, Harry specialized in developing solutions by applying the most cutting-edge technologies available at the time to innovate and solve large-scale military and later civilian problems with technology-based solutions.
Immediately following his military service, Harry moved to Washington, D.C. and worked for the Defense Atomic Support Agency at the Pentagon, today known as the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project (AFSWP), where he applied his physics and military experience toward conducting offensive and defensive military training in nuclear weapons operations and supporting nuclear tests. It was there Harry was first exposed to and became one of the early global experts in computers. More importantly, it was during his time in D.C. that he met Nancy Erbal, who in 1970 would become his wife for the next 52 years.
Following his time in the Pentagon, Harry moved with his family to New Jersey and served as the Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation. There, he implemented one of the first computer data processing systems in the nation, transforming the department into a global showcase of operational improvements. He leveraged the most cutting-edge technology of the time in a commercial setting: computers.
Harry moved to the private sector and became a principal and partner at Datacom, where he and his team conceptualized and pioneered Electronic Toll Collection systems. Harry led the company as it designed and implemented electronic toll collection systems around the world, including the E-ZPass system here in New Jersey. After its sale to Lockheed, Harry ran the transportation systems and solutions group of Lockheed for nine years, building and managing electronic toll collection solutions around the world.
Harry’s next stop was Navigation Technologies (“Navteq”) as a principal in 1994. While at Navteq, he led the company’s efforts in developing the first in-vehicle navigation platform. Under Harry’s leadership, Navteq took from concept to global standard a revolutionary technology that changed and improved hundreds of millions of lives: satellite in-vehicle guidance. Today, this technology is in use on every mobile phone in most of the world, providing real-time driving directions to countless millions every day.
Always a passionate innovator, during his professional career, Harry conceptualized and served as one of the founding members – and later the chairman – of ITS America. ITS America is an industry nonprofit group created to advance the industry of intelligent transportation systems in the United States. Today, ITS America is one of the largest and most important industry advocation groups in the world, continuing to carry the torch Harry lit of delivering technology-based solutions to improve transportation across the United States and the world.
Throughout his life, Harry was a devoted family man. He met the love of his life, his beloved wife Nancy, while working in Washington, D.C. They married in 1970 and shared an amazing 52-year marriage and life together until her passing in 2022. Harry and Nancy settled in Middletown in 1980, where they lived for 39 years, and raised their three sons. During these years, you would find Harry involved with his children’s activities, from coaching sports (baseball, basketball), to chaperoning class trips with Nancy, leading fundraisers for school and other organizations (Lincroft Little League was one of his passion projects), and working with the local Elks lodge in Red Bank. In 2019, Harry and Nancy moved to Red Bank where they quickly became town favorites in all the local restaurants and establishments they so often frequented.
Harry was a lifelong fan of the Boston Red Sox, doing all he could to (unsuccessfully) convert his Nancy away from the Yankees.
Following his retirement from Navteq, Harry focused all of his time and energy on his family. Harry and Nancy spent most weekends traveling the state of New Jersey attending their grandchildren’s soccer, softball, lacrosse, baseball, basketball, cross country and Irish step dancing events. It’s a testament to their energy that they could keep up the schedule.
Harry and Nancy were lovers of the beach, never missing an opportunity to spend time at the family beach house they built. The beach house was a magnet for their sons and grandchildren. It was in Seaside Park where he taught his sons to body surf (a skill they have passed on to their children) and, in later years, would bring his grandchildren to the 4th of July Bicycle Parade. In the winter, you would find Harry and Nancy in Miami Beach, which they considered a second home. Harry is infamous in Miami for entertaining locals at the restaurants and bars with stories of his incredible life experiences, while making them laugh with his quick wit and lovable sense of humor.
Harry’s passion for the country was second to none. He loved the country that his children and grandchildren would inherit. Harry was continuously giving back to the nation that, in his words, “provided him with the opportunities to do so much.” This is reflected in the countless hours and time he donated to the many causes he felt just and important, including DAV (Disabled American Veterans), AFPI (America First Policy Institute), Wounded Warrior Project, VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars), and many, many others.
Anyone who knew Harry from his childhood, his military service, his professional time or his years of retirement would describe him as a loving husband, a loving father, a loving grandfather, brilliant, passionate, a patriot, an innovator, a great leader, a person with incredible passion for life, a loyal friend, a great storyteller and, most importantly, a truly great man.
Harry will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
Visitation was held Oct. 14 at John E. Day Funeral Home, Red Bank. A funeral Mass was held Oct. 15 at St. James Church, Red Bank, followed by interment at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Disabled American Veterans (DAV) at dav.org. Or send a check to DAV – Disabled American Veterans, P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45250-0301.
The article originally appeared in the October 17 – 23, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
