3.20.2003
Terry Rakoski, 30; 'daredevil' with a soft side
Terry Rakoski, 30, had just gotten her first passport. She and her husband,
Richard, were planning a long-awaited honeymoon just as soon as he returned
from military duty in Afghanistan.
Theresa L. Serpa married Richard H. Rakoski Jr. on June 29, one week
before he was sent to Afghanistan with the 772nd Military Police Company.
The couple had planned the wedding for this year, but when he was called
for active duty, they pushed up the date, according to Terry's friend
and coworker Alan Medeiros.
"After the wedding, she went running around showing everybody the
photos," recalled another coworker from Copley Controls in Canton,
Mass. They tried to reassure her that he would be safe overseas. "I
remember when he first left, I just kept telling her, he'll be fine, he'll
come home to you," one friend said.
Terry's friends say she managed to keep up a positive attitude. She organized
a company program that sent shaving cream, batteries, and other supplies
to the soldiers in Afghanistan, one friend said.
Terry was a meticulous worker in her detail-oriented job as a quality
assurance inspector, Medeiros said.
She was also an expert pool player, who played once a week through the
American Pool Association League, and "a real rocker," he said.
But she also had a softer side, studying the Bible over lunch, playing
cribbage, and sharing stories about her cats with coworkers.
Thursday nights, Terry and her sister Christina
DiRienzo would get together with their mother, Patricia Pina, for
dinner and games of kitty whist.
"Both of my girls loved to play cards," Patricia said. "I'm
going to miss those card nights, believe me."
Christina also died in the fire.
Recalling Terry's "daredevil" streak, Patricia tells how Terry
went sky-diving with a group from work, and took her on a hot-air balloon
ride for her birthday.
"She always tried to outdo herself," Patricia said.
Terry also had exciting adventures planned: this summer, she planned
to go white-water rafting.
The Taunton apartment that Terry and Richard shared was very tidy, according
to her mother. "Terry was a neatnick: a place for everything, and
everything in its place," she said.
Terry kept in touch with Richard overseas through the Internet and by
cell phone. The couple were planning their honeymoon, a trip to Niagara
Falls, Canada, for this spring.
Richard came back to the United States early, to make arrangements for
Terry's funeral.
-- Jessica Resnick-Ault
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