Frank David Golder, 80, of East Quogue, NY, entered into eternal rest on Wednesday, April 30, 2014 after a protracted endurance of ALS. He is survived by his loving wife of 54 years, Dolores Gohery Golder; his five children, Kate Golder of New Orleans; Daniel Golder of Babylon, NY; David Golder of Freeport, NY; Laura Golder Kenney of East Quogue; and Joseph Golder of Mattituck, NY and their spouses Carolyn, Suzanne, Katie and Richard; his nine grandchildren, Daniel, Kristin, Devin, James, William, Diana, Joseph, Grace and Jack; and his one great-grandchild, Astrid Violet.

He is also survived by his brothers, Thomas Golder of Albuquerque; Donald Golder of Yardley, PA; and Wills Golder of Freeport, NY; and sisters, Meta Carillo of Rockville Centre, NY; and Liz Collett of East Rockaway, NY. He was predeceased by his brother Robert Golder of Bay Shore, NY. He leaves behind 32 nieces and nephews and their spouses and children.

Mr. Golder was born on May 10, 1933, in Philadelphia to Margaret and Frank Golder, and raised in Rockville Centre, NY, attending Southside High School. He attended the University of Washington, joined the Air Force, and was recruited to an intensive Chinese language program at Yale for the purposes of interpreting enemy radio transmissions during the Korean War, and often entertained his willing audiences with renditions of the tune "Davy Crockett" in Mandarin. He was awarded a medal of good conduct for his military service, but never got around to picking it up. He was a three-day winner on old-school Jeopardy, needling Art Fleming that he was actually the World Jeopardy Champion because the show didn't include competitors from Europe or the Far East. He applied to NASA's Teacher in Space program, citing the fact that he and his wife had never gone on separate vacations, but was, thankfully, as it turned out, rejected.

Mr. Golder lived most of his life in Baldwin, NY, where his children were raised. He taught English in the Lawrence, NY, school system for thirty-four years before his retirement in 1994, having two or three days to himself before happily embarking on a nine-year stint as Grandma Gohery's caretaker. He was a lover and avid purveyor of the English language, and through his warmth, wit and unique brand of intelligence, he touched and changed the lives of thousands of young people during his career. He coached boys' soccer and girls' tennis at Lawrence Junior High and will be remembered by several generations of students in that town in addition to everyone he met, from the guy who made sandwiches at Nunzio's Deli to people he met on his travels to New Orleans and around the globe, to his loving family and dearest friends.

Since his move to East Quogue, Mr. Golder was an active member of the Quogue VFW Post #5350, and was inducted as Post Commander in 2013, and remained in that position until shortly before his death. He retained his easygoing, humor-driven, selfless personality — despite having been beset by one of the most terrible and unrelentingly cruel diseases that can affect the human body. He was a lifelong fan of the Mets and Rangers, but the Giants might have been the only entity on Earth that could elicit from him both palpable joy and deep depression. His Giants devotion was touched upon in a Newsday feature article during Superbowl XLVI; had he had a male great-grandchild, he undoubtedly would have been named Eli. He retained his mind and spirit to the end — winking at Dolores, the love of his life, and smiling and complimenting those around him until he passed, thankfully, into a peaceful rest.

A wake will be held for Mr. Golder at R. J. O' Shea Funeral Home on Montauk Highway in Hampton Bays on Thursday, May 8, from 2-4pm and 7-9pm. A memorial mass will be said for Mr. Golder on Friday, May 9, at 5pm at St. Rosalie's Mission Church on Montauk Highway in East Quogue. Donations can be made in Mr. Golder's name to ALS research; envelopes will be available at the wake.