Nick Thaddeus Vinturella, 88, New Orleans native with a servant heart, passed away peacefully on July 12, 2025 in Covington, Tennessee. Nick was born on December 26, 1936 to Carlo and Lillian Vinturella at their.home. He attended St. Leo the Great Elementary and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. He was the oldest of three children. Nick was an accomplished butcher and worked in his father's grocery store from the age of 12 until his father retired and closed the store in the early 1980s. Nick then converted the grocery space into JMJ Ceramic Studio, providing a rare artistic outlet in the 7th Ward community through his ceramics classes. Nick was a self-taught artisan and craftsman. He built and repaired many homes in the 7th Ward, learning his carpentry skills from reading mail-order books and from watching the skilled laborers in the neighborhood. His pride was "Madonna", a fishing boat he built in the back of his family home. He was also a natural in the kitchen, learning to cook from his mother and from watching cooking shows on TV. He loved to watch Julia Child and Chef Martin Yan on PBS. He served as a cook in the National Guard for over 6 years. He cared for both of his parents through multiple illnesses, cooking and cleaning for them until his mother passed away in 1992 and his father passed away in 2005. Two months after his father's death, Nick evacuated to his sister's home in Memphis for Hurricane Katrina in August of 2005 and never went back to New Orleans. He found his "faith family" in the parish of Our Lady of Sorrows in Memphis, serving and worshipping there for almost 20 years and forging lasting friendships in the community. As a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, he helped maintain the parish's food pantry and distribute groceries to those in need. He served as a eucharistic minister and altar server. He built an outdoor Stations of the Cross for Our Lady of Sorrows Church and made repairs at the Poor Clare Monastery in Frayser. He loved painting and woodworking and continued both as a hobby well into his eighties. Nick was preceded in death by his parents, Lillian and Carlo, and his
brother, Joseph. He leaves behind his sister Lucy and sister-in-law Adele, as well as his niece and goddaughter Amy, who called him Parrain, and her children, Jacques and Elise. A funeral Mass will be held at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church (3700 Thomas St, Memphis, TN) at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, July 18th, followed by a reception in the parish cafeteria. The graveside service will be at Northridge Woodhaven Cemetery (6755 Hwy 51 North, Millington, TN).