Frank Mondi and his daughter Lisa. {courtesy}
When Frank Mondi began his career as a science teacher, LBJ was in the Oval Office.
In 1967, mankind was still two years away from landing on the moon. That’s when Mondi found his niche at Margate Middle School, which became Margate Junior High School.
When he finally discarded his Bunsen burner and retired 36 years later, it was 2003, and George W. Bush was living in the White House.
To his daughter, Lisa Parish, who now lives in Gatlinburg, TN, with her own family, Mondi was not only an amazing dad but also an incredible science teacher. To confirm his legacy at the school, the science wing bears his name: Mondi Hall.
Mondi passed away in January 2024 at age 85. Parish remembers her father’s vast fund of scientific knowledge. “He could tell me anything about anything,” she said.
Parish says the science wing was named after her dad for one simple reason: because he was Mr. Mondi.
“That’s how much of an amazing person he was,” she said.
Not only was he fully dedicated to giving it his all when it came to imparting scientific knowledge to his students, but he did it with a sense of humor.
“He didn’t like kids chewing gum in his class,” she said, “so he kept a pickle jar in the room. If he caught someone chewing gum in his class, he’d make them put it in the jar.”
Not only did Parish attend Margate Middle as a student while her dad taught there, but she later had an administrative job there for 14 years. They lived in Margate, and she describes herself as “forever being a Margate girl.”
Unfortunately, it’s been more than two decades since Mondi taught his last class, so no one at the school was there during his tenure. Several calls to the school searching for anyone who might remember him were to no avail.
Former student Danny Fulks, a North Carolina resident, remembers Mondi well. “He was so awesome,” he said. “I think it’s awesome he had a wing named after him.”
Fulks says all his students knew Mondi was there for them. “He had one of the biggest hearts. He was like a father to me. He knew I didn’t have a father. He knew I came from a violent home.”
Fulks said he still remembers some related to science, others the life lessons Mondi taught him.
Frank Mondi and Lisa as a baby. {courtesy}
On one occasion, Fulks recalls getting in trouble in Mondi’s class. He describes himself as a troublemaker back then. He remembers throwing something in the class toward his teacher. Instead of escorting him to the principal or the dean, Mondi took him to the office to speak with Lisa.
Mondi was born in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Indiana University with a master’s degree in microbiology. After retiring from teaching in 2010, he moved to Tavernier in the Keys, where he worked for ten years as a microbiologist. Later, he and his partner of 24 years, Jill Byrne, moved to Winter Haven, FL, so he would be close to Walt Disney World, where he loved Mickey, Yoda, and all the Star Wars family.
Mondi passed away at the age of 84 on January 4, 2024. Mondi also left behind a son, Frank Thomas Jr of Vandergrift, PA, four grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.
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