Luketić, Mike, 88, of Bethpage, passed away on April 16, 2022. Beloved husband of Zivka, Beloved father of Michael, Joseph and Marian. Cherished father-in-law of Daniel Mrakovčić. Loving grandfather to Daniela Kristina. Cherished brother of Ana Kraljic and Maria Benci.
Mike was born in Ogulin, Croatia in 1933, to Maria and Josip Luketić and emigrated to the United States as a young man. Here at a Croatian picnic, he met Živka Črnosija and married her on May 2, 1965. They were married almost 57 years and raised three children together. Mike was the family patriarch and someone you could turn to for help or advice. He enjoyed going fishing, surf casting at Sunken Meadow and Oyster Bay beaches and offshore fishing on his sons’ boat. He loved to play the accordion and was thoroughly amused by watching professional wrestling. As a machinist/tool and die maker for many years, he had a gift for crafting things from scratch. He even worked on the lunar module that was built at Grumman. He took joy in teaching his sons and nephews how to repair cars. He was delighted by the arrival of his granddaughter and would take great pride in similarities between the two of them, declaring her a “Ličanka.” He loved his homeland and returned as often as he was able. He will be greatly missed.
The family will receive visitors Tuesday, April 19, 2022, 2-4 and 7-9 pm at Arthur F. White Funeral Home, Inc., 234 Broadway, Bethpage. Funeral Mass Wednesday, April 20, 2022, 10 am, at St. Martin of Tours RC Church. Internment following at St. Charles Cemetery, Farmingdale, NY. If you would prefer, donations in Mike’s memory can be made in lieu of flowers, to the Alzheimer’s Association; https://www.alz.org, to help find a cure for the disease that stole his wife away from him years too soon.
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