David Thaddeus Sawicki of Independence Township died peacefully after a long illness while surrounded by his family on September 1, 2019, at the age of 47 at Morristown Medical Center. 

David was born on February 26, 1972 in Belleville, New Jersey, the youngest child of Thaddeus Sawicki and Evelyn Goley Sawicki. 

David had a wonderful childhood growing up in Union with his two sisters, Karen and Diane. David’s love of baseball started very early with Little League and eventually playing baseball as a Union High School Farmer. He went on to play baseball at Seton Hall University where he was a nationally ranked Division I pitcher. David went on to coach college baseball at several New Jersey colleges. He was most proud of establishing the Centenary College Cyclones Baseball Team and would go on to lead them to the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship Regionals in 2005 and 2006. He most recently worked for Campbell University in North Carolina as the Director of Regional Admissions and loved helping young students become Camels. 

David lived life with a bold personality and a full heart. David moved to Hackettstown in 2002 where he met, quickly fell in love, and married Jennifer Nick Sawicki in 2004. Jennifer and David had two beautiful daughters, Katherine (Katie) and Madelyn. David adored his girls and was an attentive father. During his free time, David would coach his daughters’ teams and served on the Independence Township Recreation Commission to ensure the children in town would have the same wonderful experiences on the ball fields as he had growing up. David was never shy and would always be heard from the sidelines cheering on his two favorite girls, Katie and Madelyn. He also loved to spend time on Long Beach Island, cheering on his beloved NJ Devils, and watching Star Wars with his daughters.   

He is preceded in death by his father, Thaddeus in 2006. David is survived by his wife Jennifer, and his two young daughters, Katie and Madelyn, of Independence Township; his mother Evelyn, of Waretown, NJ; his sister Karen, of Basking Ridge, NJ; and his sister Diane, of Waretown, NJ. 

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Cochran Funeral Home, 905 High Street, Hackettstown, NJ 07840. Calling hours will be Friday, September 6, 2019 from 2:00pm – 4:00pm and from 7:00 – 9:00pm. The funeral service will be on Saturday, September 7, 2019 at 10:00am at the Cochran Funeral Home. The burial will take place at Ocean County Cemetery 280 Wells Mills Road, Waretown, NJ.  

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to be made to Katie and Madelyn’s College Funds. Donations can be sent to the family, funeral home, or Go Fund Me https://www.gofundme.com/f/sawicki-girls-college-fund?pc=em_dn_contacts_r&rcid=r01-156755619411-e548c5a0739346ef&member=2818246&utm_medium=email&utm_source=product&utm_campaign=p_email%2Binviteacceptedemailtoteammember

Those wishing to leave an online condolence may do so at www.cochranfuneral.com/

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