Dean M. Giolando

Professor Dean M. Giolando, 61, from Buffalo, NY passed away suddenly on the 2nd of January 2019. Dean was born on April 30, 1957. He and his four siblings were raised by their loving mother Eileen Giolando, and he was the first in his family to receive a college degree. He received a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry and dedicated much of his research to improving the efficiency of solar cells. He started as an Assistant Professor in 1988 at the University of Toledo, where he met a German exchange student, his future wife, Kristin Kirschbaum. He received tenure in 1994 and later became a full Professor. He was enthusiastic when his first son Mark-Robin was born in 1992 and delighted when Patrick joined the family in 1996. Family became the center of his life. He was a most attentive father who could never say “no” and his Italian roots shown through when it came to cooking. He loved playing with the boys. To everyone’s surprise he would become a soccer coach for Mark-Robin even though he always stuck to the Winston Churchill’s motto: “First of all, no sports”. Later he drove his wife to every single one of her races and waited at the finish line. He developed a new passion for FIRST (STEM education), beginning with FIRST Junior Lego League, then FIRST Lego League and finally FIRST Robotics Competition. This became a family tradition starting in 2003 and lasted for the remainder of his life. He was overjoyed last month to receive the Outstanding Volunteer Achievement Award- for the second time. He will be greatly missed by his beloved wife, Kristin; sons, Mark-Robin and Patrick; as well as his siblings, Eileen, Paul, Gary and Bob. A Memorial Service for Dean will begin at 11 a.m. on Monday, January 7, 2019 at the Walker Funeral Home, 5155 W. Sylvania Avenue, with visitation beginning at 10:30 a.m. He will be laid to rest at Ottawa Hills Memorial Park at a later date. Tributes in Deans memory may be directed to any Environmental Protection Organizations or Coral Reef Organizations.