Bronx, N.Y. (January 12, 2015) – Fordham University lost a very special alumnus on Sunday with the passing of Nicholas Baldino, a 1948 Fordham College graduate and member of the Fordham baseball teams of the late 1940's. Baldino was 90.
 
"Nick Baldino was a great Fordham man," said athletic director emeritus Frank McLaughlin. "He loved the university and it showed in his many charitable works for both the university and the athletic department. He was also a tremendous and dedicated family man who took great pride in his family. Everyone at Fordham will miss Nick dearly."
 
Born in New York City, Baldino moved with his family shortly after birth to Elberson, New Jersey, where he graduated from Asbury Park High School in 1941 at the age of 16. He then enrolled at Upsala College before attending Fordham.
 

In January of 1943, Baldino was called into service with the Army Air Corps at the beginning of World War II. He served as a bombardier in the 13th Army Air Force in the Pacific Theatre, participating in the New Guinea, Guadalcanal, and Philippine campaigns and received the Philippine Liberation Medal.
 
Following the war, Baldino returned to Fordham on a baseball scholarship where he played for legendary head coach, Jack Coffey. He was a teammate of current Los Angeles Dodger Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully and a roommate of former Fordham head coach John Bach.
 
Following graduation, Baldino was a very loyal supporter of Fordham University Athletics for many years. A past member of the Hall of Fame Committee, Baldino was very instrumental in fund raising for all of the Fordham athletic programs.
 
In 1981, Baldino was among the first group to receive an Honorary Letter at the annual Block F Awards Dinner and in 2001 he was inducted into the Fordham Athletics Hall of Fame. He was also the inaugural recipient of the Mara Family Award in 2001, named in honor of the family of the late Wellington Mara, a 1937 graduate of Fordham, for his their dedication and contributions to the football program.
 
A wake will be held for Baldino on Friday, January 16, at the Woolley - Boglioli Funeral Home in Long Branch, New Jersey, and a memorial mass will be performed on Saturday January 17, 11 a.m. at St. James R.C. Church in Red Bank, New Jersey.