My name is Joe DiRienzo, and I have been friends with Chris Ritter for over 45 years. I was deeply saddened to learn of Chris’s untimely passing. When the sad news arrived, Chris’s sister Sue and I spoke and shared our mutual grief.

An immediate concern of ours is that Chris’s daughter Abbie Nascimento, who is starting a young family with Chris’s granddaughter Magnolia, 11 months old, needs to organize her mother’s memorial between Florida (where she and Chris live) and New Jersey (where Chris’s family lives). Abbie and Magnolia were Chris’s loves and whole life. She lived for them, and I am positive she now looks down from above, holding them in her motherly arms. So, I have started a fundraiser to assist Abbie and her family with travel, lodging, memorial expenses, and to support Magnolia’s future, where all the funds will go.