Dominico J. Gioioso, a retired attorney and amateur baseball coach, died of kidney failure Dec. 25 at Christiana Hospital in Newark, Del. He was 79 and was a longtime Mount Washington resident.
Born in Baltimore and raised in Mount Washington, he was the son of Nicholas Gioioso, a master hatter who owned the Joicy Hat Manufacturing Co., and Rintha Kellum, a homemaker. He was a 1952 City College graduate and earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, College Park. He then earned a degree from the University of Maryland School of Law. He also served in the Army.
"His father said to him, 'You'll become a doctor or a lawyer,'" said a son, Richard N. Gioioso of Philadelphia. "He fainted at the sight of blood, so his career was set."
Mr. Gioioso met his future wife, JoAnne Girardi, on a skiing trip sponsored by a Catholic alumni club.
He worked in his father's store, Joicy Hat on St. Paul Street in downtown Baltimore, before setting up a law practice at 208 N. Liberty St. He maintained a small, solo-practitioner law office. He had no secretary, and on occasion, his wife assisted him. He practiced for 45 years and retired in 2010.
Family members said he loved baseball and coached his sons on Lutherville-Timonium Recreation Council teams.
"He taught hundreds of young men the ins and outs of the sport and transmitted to them his own passion for playing," said another son, Michael J. Gioioso of Baltimore.
Mr. Gioioso was a reader and kept abreast of local and international events. He also played the stock market.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Roman Catholic Shrine of the Sacred Heart, Smith Avenue in Mount Washington, where he was a member.
In addition to his sona, survivors include two others sons, Stephen D. Gioioso of Newark, Del., and Nicholas A. Gioioso of Baltimore; a daughter, Diane M. Gioioso of Baltimore; a brother, Wayne Gioioso Sr. of Baltimore; and three grandchildren. His wife of 40 years died in 2013.