Tributes pour in for longtime Patchogue-Medford chemistry teacher Daniel Visconti, 93

‘Mr. V’ taught chemistry for nearly six decades

Visconti ran the tightest lab on Long Island, left generations of students reciting his catchphrases decades later

He built a career on mnemonics, made a religion out of lab cleanliness, and turned “ous gif ite, ic gif ate, hydro-ic gif ide” into words former students still recite decades later. Daniel A. Visconti — known to generations of Long Island students simply as “Mr. V” — has died at 93.

Visconti passed away July 18 with his family at his side, just weeks shy of his 94th birthday, according to his obituary.

Born Aug. 13, 1932, in Brooklyn, Visconti spent nearly six decades teaching chemistry, first at Elmont Memorial High School, then for decades at Patchogue-Medford High School, and finally then-St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and a master’s in education from St. John’s University, then added a second master’s in chemistry from Adelphi University.

Before serving in the classroom, Visconti was an U.S. Army sergeant during the Korean War, where he spent part of his tour driving a Jeep to ferry a Catholic priest to the front lines so soldiers could attend Mass. That priest, who later became a monsignor, spent years telling congregations stories about “Danny the Jeep driver from Brooklyn.”

Decades later, Visconti was invited out West as a surprise guest of honor for the monsignor’s 60th anniversary in the priesthood.

In the classroom, students remember Visconti as a showman with high standards, particularly when it came to the lab. He was meticulous about cleanliness and order, personally walking students through how to thoroughly clean up the lab area after every use.

What’s more, he delivered discipline with a wink, students said. Consequences for a poor lab cleanup could mean serving detention after school. Though former students fondly recall him handing out punishments with love.

Elias Mattas, a Patchogue-Medford graduate from the late 1980s who went on to earn a Ph.D. in chemical engineering, credited Visconti with setting the course of his career. He said he still uses Visconti’s mnemonic devices today — including with his own daughter — and can still hear him telling the class to “put it in your pipe and smoke it.”

“I looked forward to 11th grade chemistry class everyday like no other,” Mattas wrote. “He was clearly one-of-kind and impacted me in the deepest way possible.”

Christine Mariea Themann, who took his class in 1977, remembered his comic timing and the faces he’d make at students during lectures. She went on to become a teacher herself and later subbed in Visconti’s old classroom.

“Rest Peacefully in the Arms of the Angels Mr. Visconti,” she wrote. “You were one of the best at Pat-Med.”

At St. Joseph’s University, Visconti mentored organic chemistry student Danielle Guilfoil starting in 2010, hiring her as his lab aide and telling her on her first day, “You are part of the family now.”

Guilfoil said Visconti later called her his granddaughter, attended her medical school graduation with his wife, Patricia, and remained sharp discussing organic chemistry material until his final days.

“He never liked the word ‘goodbye,'” Guilfoil wrote. “He always said, ‘It is never goodbye, it is see you later.'”

George Dzus, who studied under Visconti at then-Patchogue High School in 1968, said the class set him on a path to a chemistry degree from Hofstra University, a master’s from Adelphi and a 42-year career at DuPont.

St. Joseph’s University professor Frank Antonawich called Visconti “a generous man who was great to talk to and extremely dedicated to our students.”

Other former students remembered him fondly on social media. Jorge Amadeo, a 1985 Patchogue-Medford graduate, called him “seriously my best teacher,” and former student Eileen Campbell recalled his classroom — and office — as a refuge.

“He gave us a safe space to land when life was hectic,” Campbell wrote. “His office was always open, and many of us hung out there. I still remember boiling water in a Bunsen burner for tea.”

Visconti is survived by his wife of 60 years, Patricia; his daughter, Jennifer (Jon DeMaio); his sons, Mark (Karen) and Danny (Tina); eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

_{Top: Daniel Visconti (right, 1986 Patchogue-Medford HS yearbook, and left, Chapey & Sons Funeral Home).}