Fredericka Hagerty

Fredericka Ann Hagerty passed away peacefully on December 15, 2023, at the age of 84. She was born on January 28, 1939, in Steubenville, Ohio. From an early age, Fredericka showed a passion for knowledge and a deep love for reading books. She attended Garfield High School in Akron and went on to earn her bachelor's degree in English at the University of Akron, and later earned her master's degree in library science at Kent State University.

She dedicated her professional life to helping others obtain knowledge, working as a high school English teacher in the 1960s, as head of the Peninsula Public Library in the 1970s, and as a technical writer at The Ohio Edison Company from the 1980s until her eventual retirement. She was also an adjunct lecturer in English department at the University of Akron. Her commitment to fostering a love of knowledge and learning left an impact on untold many throughout her career.

A woman of wide-ranging talents and interests, Fredericka was an accomplished fiber artist, quilter, knitter, and bead weaver with a keen eye for color. A history buff, and as smart as a whip when it came to innumerable subjects, she was an unbeatable opponent in word games and games of trivia. She loved corny jokes, puns, and sarcasm of every description and she punctuated these loves with her infectious laugh.

She loved music, especially folk, Irish, and classical music. A life-long lover of animals and nature, she enjoyed gardening and birding, and she doted on many beloved pets throughout her life. She volunteered at a local feline rescue, caring for the needs of adoptable cats and kittens, and writing engaging feline biographies for posting to the rescue's adoption website.

She was a skilled photographer who captured especially good candid portraits and nature shots with her prized film cameras. It was her "Pop" who stirred her interest in photography, as her youthful eyes watched him work in his home-based darkroom. Her "Pop" also sparked her enduring passion for Cleveland Indians baseball. Never a fair-weather fan, she enjoyed the perennial pastime from her earliest days when the two listened to Tribe radio broadcasts together.

At various times in her life, she was active in community theater, including at Weathervane Playhouse, and she loved to attend events with her Irish friends at Akron's Hibernian Club. She was a very social being with the great fortune of having large flocks of friends who she loved dearly. She enjoyed fulfilling her civic duties working as a poll worker for the Summit County Board of Elections.

An only child, her beloved parents both preceded her in death-her father Frederick P. Hagerty, who died February 28, 1953, and her mother, Anna M. (Osburn) Hagerty, who died December 28, 1989.

She leaves to mourn her passing her daughter, Deborah L. Deryck (John Brandy), and her son, Christopher L. Deryck (Dr. Lynne Ruess), her grandchildren, Sean K. Deryck and Anna C. Deryck, and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and countless cherished friends.

A Mass of Christian Burial for Fredericka will be at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, January 26 at St. Sebastian Catholic Church, 476 Mull Ave., Akron, Ohio. There will be no calling hours, wake, or reception. Cremation has taken place, and per their mother's wishes, her children will spread her ashes in the Dining Fork Creek near her beloved ancestral family farm in Scio, Ohio.

In lieu of flowers, please make a charitable donation in her memory to St. Sebastian Church, or to a public library or animal rescue organization of your choice.