A Tradition of Love: How Two Generations of the Pacicco Family Found Love at NYMC
Elaine G. Pacicco, M.D. ’85, and Thomas J. Pacicco, M.D. ’85, had their own love story in the 1980s at NYMC before their son met his wife at the College 30 years later.
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Elaine Grammer Pacicco, M.D. ’85, could not have imagined that the man she saw playing Pac-Man in the Basic Sciences Building (BSB) hallway would eventually become her husband, Thomas J. Pacicco, M.D. '85. Their story would span two countries, multiple U.S. states and three children—one being son Thomas who would eventually meet his own wife at New York Medical College (NYMC) nearly 30 years later. Now the Pacicco family looks back fondly on their time at NYMC, which fostered a lifetime’s worth of love.
It started with a simple question to Dr. Elaine Pacicco’s roommate, who knew Dr. Thomas Pacicco from his undergraduate studies at Columbia University. “I thought he was pretty cute,” Dr. Elaine Pacicco fondly recalled. Sure enough, the two started dating and enjoyed their time on campus, walking over from Grasslands residence halls to spend time outdoors, whether it was playing flag football with their friends or enjoying picnics on Sundays.
Their relationship further blossomed, leading to their engagement in 1983 and marriage right before graduation in 1985. Their journey would take them much farther than Grasslands. Dr. Elaine Pacicco went to NYMC on a military scholarship with the Army and upon graduation, had to complete a military residency. She elected to go to San Francisco for her military residency at Letterman Army Medical Center and Dr. Thomas Pacicco chose to only apply for residencies in the same area so they could stay together, completing his residency at St. Mary’s Medical Center. During this time, their son, Thomas A. Pacicco, M.D. ’14, was born. “It really opened our eyes. We were young and adventurous, and we loved it,” Dr. Elaine Pacicco said, who specialized as a pediatrician during her career.
Going across the country to San Francisco would not be the farthest place the Pacicco family would go. Dr. Elaine Pacicco still had a military obligation and was stationed in Heidelberg, Germany, but not without her family. Dr. Thomas Pacicco enlisted as a military physician and was able to join his wife. It was an eventful time for the family, as they welcomed their second son, Michael, and watched as the Berlin wall came down in 1989.
Their time in Germany came to a close in 1991, when Dr. Thomas Pacicco secured a residency in gastroenterology at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, as the couple welcomed their third child, Elise, before the couple settled in North Carolina in 1995.
When it came time for their son, Dr. Thomas A. Pacicco, to choose where he wanted to go to medical school, Drs. Elaine and Thomas J. Pacicco would be lying if they told you they did not encourage their son to attend NYMC, the same place that was the start of their incredible journey—sure enough, the lobbying worked. “I chose NYMC because of my family history there and proximity to NYC,” said Dr. Thomas A. Pacicco.
History repeated itself when their son met his wife, Jamie C. Goldsmith Pacicco, M.P.H.’14, while attending NYMC. There was no Pac-Man machine this time, however, as these two met in a White Plains bar during a NYMC charity auction. Ms. Goldsmith Pacicco and Dr. Elaine Pacicco share the same home state of Massachusetts, and both expressed how they wanted to test out another area of the East Coast. “My husband and son both married a Mass girl from NYMC,” Dr. Elaine Pacicco joked.
Dr. Thomas A. Pacicco, who is a neuroradiologist, and Ms. Goldsmith Pacicco began dating shortly after they met and they, too, have fond memories on campus and in the surrounding areas. “We enjoyed softball, the local movie theaters and restaurants and the local towns, especially Tarrytown,” Ms. Goldsmith Pacicco said. Their journey also included a move, as Dr. Thomas A. Pacicco completed his residency in diagnostic radiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, in 2019. The couple have two young children of their own now and live just 20 minutes south of Drs. Elaine and Thomas J. Pacicco in South Carolina. There is plenty of time before anyone finds out if they will follow in the footsteps of their parents and grandparents.
What began as Dr. Elaine Pacicco asking about a fellow student who she had an interest in turned into a decades-long, multigenerational story. The family looks back on their time at NYMC in a very unique fashion.
“Our time there was wonderful.” Dr. Elaine Pacicco said. “NYMC has been very good to my family.”