Bernard J. Ruggieri of New York City and Southampton died on May 9. He was 83.
Born in Brooklyn to Joseph and Mary Ruggieri, he was a graduate of Poly Prep, Brown University, and Brooklyn Law School and served in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant.
Mr. Ruggieri was assistant counsel to the late New York governor Averell Harriman, legislative representative of the City of New York under the late Mayor Robert Wagner of New York, and was New York City’s liaison to the administrations of presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He later served as counsel to both the majority and minority leaders of the New York Senate.
In addition, he was head of the government relations department at the firm of Shea and Gould, representing the legislative and executive branches of New York State as well as New York City. In 1972 he was elected head of the New York City Democratic Party.
Mr. Ruggieri also served on the boards of Daytop Village and St. Vincent’s Hospital and was a member of the Meadow Club and the Bathing Corporation of Southampton.
He is survived by his wife, Martha McLanahan of New York City and Southampton; two daughters, Christina Ruggieri and Kate Ruggieri, both of New York City, and their half-sister, Lisa Hagerman of Denver.
A memorial mass was held May 13 in New York City. In lieu of flowers, donations to Daytop Village, 43 West 38th Street, New York, NY 10018 or to Langone Brain and Aging Dementia Research Center, NYU School of Medicine, MLH 321, 550 First Avenue, New York, N Y 10016 would be appreciated by the family.
on May 20, 2009