Paul DiGregorio was a multi-sport Sachem athlete and later worked as a security guard in the district. After suffering from multiple health issues related to diabetes and heart disease, he died this week at 55.
He was an All-Long Island baseball player and League I MVP. After Sachem, he was a four-year starting third baseman at Division I St. John’s University, playing for legendary head coach Joe Russo where he was an All-American.
“Pauly was a tremendous athlete, especially as a third baseman,” said Wayne Wilson, a Sachem alum and Director of Security in Sachem.
Though he went to school for elementary education, he was a baseball coach at St. John’s and then Stony Brook University. He also ran his own landscaping business for over 20 years before getting sick with cancer, something he eventually beat. In his final chapter, he became a security guard at his alma mater.
“Over the last eight years he ended up being one of my closest friends and was honestly the most loyal and trustworthy person I have ever met in my entire life,” said Mike Alvino, a Sachem resident and district security guard. “My entire family got to know him very well and we are all devastated.”
Wilson referenced the poem by Linda Ellis “The Dash” – meant to insight meaning behind how people live between the dash of birth and death – when thinking about DiGregorio.
They played softball on Sunday’s, played on the Long Island Empire State Games baseball team, and worked landscaping jobs together.,
“He was hard working, easy spirited and a very well liked person,” said Wilson. “He had a natural ability to connect with the students, parents and staff at our athletic events and will be missed by all. Until we meet again, rest easy my friend.”