Nicolyn “Nicki” Marie DiLiddo, age 66, of Corpus Christi, Texas, passed away peacefully on July 16, 2026, surrounded by her family. While our hearts are broken, we are grateful for the 66 years we were blessed to share with a woman whose kindness, strength, and love shaped everyone fortunate enough to know her.

Born in Fresno, California, on August 7, 1959, to Nicholas and Angela DiLiddo, Nicki was the oldest of their two children. She was 100% Italian and grew up surrounded by her big, loud, and proud Italian family. She graduated from Bullard High School in 1977 with friends who became like sisters and remained close throughout her life. After high school, she enrolled at California State University, Fresno (Fresno State), where she embraced an active collegiate social life. She became a sister of Kappa Kappa Gamma, whose motto, “Dream Boldly. Live Fully.” reflected the way she lived her life. As a business major, she also became a founding member of the Iota Phi chapter of the professional business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, which remains active at the university today. Her son and daughter would later follow in her footsteps by joining the same fraternity during their college careers. She graduated from Fresno State in 1982 with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Healthcare Management.

After graduating from college, Nicki began a 40-year career in pharmaceutical sales. She was a natural. She not only had a passion for the clinical side of the business, but she also genuinely cherished the professional relationships she built along the way. She became a specialist in multiple therapeutic fields and helped launch many life-changing medications throughout her career. One of her proudest professional moments came during her time with Genentech while launching TNKase, a revolutionary medication for stroke patients. She had the opportunity to scrub into the cath lab and train cardiologists on administering the drug to active stroke patients. She got to save lives in real time.

In 2000, she met the love of her life, U.S. Navy officer Patrick Paddock. After a year of long-distance dating, they married on March 1, 2001, blending their families. Together, they raised eight children. In 2003, Patrick received transfer orders to Naples, Italy, fulfilling a lifelong dream for Nicki—to live in and explore the country of her ancestors. They spent three and a half years there with Nicki’s two children, Renna and Michael. They traveled throughout Italy and were blessed to spend time with her extended Italian family in Bari and Bisceglie. Europe became their playground as they explored Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Portugal, Spain, and France. During her time in Italy, she earned her MBA from the University of Oklahoma while also working at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Naples as a Healthcare Management Specialist. Even while living in one of the most beautiful places in the world, she found joy in serving others through healthcare.

In 2006, it was on to the next duty station—Texas. The family settled in Corpus Christi, which quickly became home. Nicki wasted no time getting back to work in "Pharma." During the final twenty years of her career, she became one of the most respected and successful pharmaceutical sales representatives in South Texas, leading the nation in sales year after year. She cherished the friendships she built with coworkers, physicians, and nurses. She was the representative every office knew—not just because of her success, but because she genuinely cared about the people she worked with and their families. Nicki never met a stranger, and she left a lasting impression on everyone she encountered.

But Nicki's favorite place in the world was at home with her family. She loved cooking, and even after long days at work, she always prepared a home-cooked meal, set the table, and gathered everyone together to eat. She lived to feed, and Italian food was her love language. From her famous clam chowder and fried pettoles at the Feast of the Seven Fishes every Christmas Eve, to Sunday red sauce with rigatoni and meatballs, or a crispy, pillowy loaf of freshly baked focaccia—if Nicki was feeding you, you were loved. She faithfully cheered on her children and grandchildren as they pursued their athletic dreams, never missing a game, rain or shine. She was also the very best porch-sitting partner. Nearly every evening ended with family gathered on the patio, talking about the day, working through life's ups and downs, and simply enjoying one another's company.

Although our lives will never be the same without her, we take comfort in the unwavering faith that guided her life and in Christ's promise of eternal life. We entrust her soul to the loving mercy of our Heavenly Father, finding peace in knowing that this is not goodbye, but until we meet again.

Her greatest joy was the family she loved so completely. She taught us that love is best expressed through generosity, time together, and caring for one another. Every family meal, every holiday gathering, every shared laugh, and every tradition we continue will carry a piece of her with us. We will honor her life by loving one another as fiercely as she loved us, by opening our homes and hearts as she always did, and by creating the same beautiful memories with our own families that she so lovingly created for ours.

Her seat at the table may now be empty, but the love she served there will nourish our family for generations to come.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Nicholas and Angela DiLiddo, and her beloved son, Jacob. She is lovingly survived by her devoted husband, Patrick; her children, Renna (Clay), Michael, Lindsey (Randy), Ashley (Drew), Cheyenne, Paul (Meredith), and Gabriel; her 14 cherished grandchildren, Brooks, Kennly, Fallon, Cassius, Lucy, Graham, Emily,

Nora, Hudson, Heaton, Evelyn, Sage, Delilah, and Zane; her brother, Frank (Teri); and her cherished nieces, nephews, cousins, dear friends, and all whose lives were enriched by knowing her.