Paul Cacicedo

Paul Cacicedo, the founder of one of the region’s biggest fencing companies, passed away Sunday, February 5, 2017. He died after a long illness at his home in Scotch Plains, surrounded by his children.

A visitation will be held at the Galante Funeral Home, 2800 Morris Ave., Union on Wednesday, February 8 from 2-4 & 7-9 PM.  A funeral service will be held at the funeral home on Friday, February 10 at 10 AM. Interment will follow at Rosehill Cemetery in Linden.

Born in Newark on Aug. 10, 1927, Paul graduated from Eastside High School and immediately enlisted in the Navy. He was deployed to the Pacific on the USS Bremerton , a 13,600-ton, Baltimore -class heavy cruiser. While serving on the Bremerton, he toured the countries of the Far East and witnessed the signing to the Treaty of Manila, which granted the Philippines independence from the U.S.

He played a lot of baseball and football in high school and after he returned from the Pacific he played guard for several seasons with the Newark East Siders semiprofessional football team.

He married Florence Mirandi in 1950 and had three children. They moved from Newark to Hillside and eventually settled in West Orange. Paul lived in Scotch Plains for the past 30 years.

After his discharge from the Navy, Paul went into construction and gravitated to the fencing side of the industry. With his friend and partner, Tom Collinson, he started Consolidated Steel and Aluminum Fence Co. in 1958.

He built Consolidated over the years into a major player in fencing, obtaining full control of the company in 1978. The company has provided fencing for commercial facilities, highways and airports in the region and for Giants Stadium, MetLife Stadium and the Giants and Jets training facilities. Paul retired in 1995 and the company, which also manufactures chain-link fence and related fixtures, is now run by his son, Paul Jr. and son-in-law, John DeRosa. Today, family-owned Consolidated Fence is one of the largest fence companies in the New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania region.

Paul was always a tinkerer and inventor. His basement workshop was filled with all the tools he needed and the remnants of his failures and successes. Among a number of patients he held was one for Sure-Loc, a fencing fastener used in high-security settings like prisons and restricted areas at airports and other transportation hubs. Sure-Loc makes it impossible to pull fence from a post. Among his many recognitions he was named to the circle of excellence by the Hispanic Business Roundtable in 2000.

Growing up, Paul love spending summer days at the beach. With his brother and father, Paul built a beach house in Seaside Heights in late 1940s and he and his family spent as much time as they could during the summer at the Jersey Shore.

Paul was as comfortable speaking in Spanish as he was in English. He was raise in a Spanish-speaking home in Newark and never lost his love of the language. His parents emigrated from Spain to the U.S. and over the years Paul traveled there as often as he could to visit relatives and friends.

He played a little golf and was a life-long Giants fans, attending games at Yankee Stadium, the Yale Bowl and Giants Stadium. He was especially fond of tailgating and happily fed the crowds that gathered for his elaborate spreads.

In his later years, Paul was devoted to his grandchildren, attending all the plays they were in, their softball, baseball and football games and all of their special events and milestones. He grew especially fond of his great grandchildren and looked forward to his Wednesdays with Matthew and Tessa.

Paul was predeceased by his sister Laura. He is survived by his brother Joseph and his former wife Florence. He is also survived by his son Paul Jr. and wife Linda of Wall Township, his daughter Roseann and her husband John DeRosa of Seaside Park, and his daughter Marceline and her husband David Allen, also of Seaside Park.

He is also survived by grandchildren John DeRosa, Lauren and her husband Jon Gallant, Paul Timothy Cacicedo, Ashley Cacicedo, Amber Cacicedo, Autumn Cacicedo and Alexandra Cacicedo. He is further survived by his great grandchildren Matthew and Tessa Gallant.

In lieu of flowers the family prefers...