Dante Lawrence Catullo of Mattituck passed away suddenly Friday, Oct. 20, 2023. He was 86 years old.

He was a graduate of Cornell University and New York Medical College. He trained at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary in Manhattan. He attained the rank lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. He served as general medical officer and surgeon during the Vietnam War. He was chief of ophthalmology and eye surgery at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Yonkers, N.Y. and fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He was program director of the Westchester Ophthalmological Society and named in the Castle Connolly Guide as one of the “Best Doctors in the N.Y. Metro Area.”

Living on the North Fork of Long Island in retirement, he served as chairman of the Southold Memorial Tree Committee and initiated, planned and established the plantings at the area adjacent to the Custer Institute, thus creating an arboretum there.

He will be missed by many. Services are private.

DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck is assisting the family.

This is a paid notice.