Richard Luke Gaul of Middletown passed peacefully into the loving arms of our Lord July 19, at the age of 74 following a courageous four-year battle with cancer. His family will always be grateful for his hard-fought gift to us of this time with him.
Richard is survived by his beloved wife of 49 years, Mary Elizabeth (née Naeder) and his sister, Melanie Gaul of Edison. He was a devoted father to two daughters, Courtney Lynn Booth and her husband John of Monmouth Beach, and Brigid Eileen Ippolito and her husband Chris of Ocean Township, and one son, Declan Patrick Gaul and his wife Sarah Greenwood Gaul of Manhattan. He was a cherished grandfather of seven grandchildren: Reagan Ippolito, Ryan Elizabeth Ippolito, Fiona Ippolito, Gehrig Ippolito, Oliver Ippolito, Simon Booth and Ronan Patrick Gaul. He was predeceased by his parents, Luke Gaul and Helen Welkos Gaul, and his brother, Daniel Gaul.
Born May 25, 1944 in Tottenville, Staten Island, Richard graduated from St. Peter’s Boys High School in 1962. After high school, Richard proudly served in the United States Navy before being honorably discharged in 1966.
Following his tour of duty in the Navy, he went on to graduate from Monmouth College in West Long Branch. Richard then embarked on a successful career in commercial printing in Manhattan as both an employee of Xerox and Merrill/Daniels and as a small business owner for more than 40 years before retiring in 2012.
Having moved to Middletown in 1970, Richard was a faithful parishioner of St. Leo the Great Church in Lincroft.
Visitation was held July 24 at the John E. Day Funeral Home, Red Bank. A Mass of Christian Burial was held July 25 at St. Leo the Great Roman Catholic Church, Lincroft, with burial immediately following at the Brigadier General William C. Doyle Cemetery in Wrightstown.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Richard’s name to Cycle for Survival to support rare cancer research are very much appreciated. Please visit Richard’s memorial website at johnedayfuneralhome.com.
