Joseph A Mollica

Joseph A.  Mollica October 24 1940 - June 8 2024 . Joseph was born and raised outside Providence, RI and graduated in 1958 from La Salle Academy High School. He graduated with a BS from the University of Rhode Island in 1962 and in 1966 from the University of Wisconsin with an MS and PhD in Pharmaceutical and Physical Chemistry.  Joseph worked at Ciba Geigy in Summit NJ for 20 years where he pioneered R&D and drug delivery innovations. He joined DuPont in Wilmington DE  in 1987 and in 1991 became the President, CEO and Chairman of the Board of DuPont Merck Pharmaceuticals, a joint venture he built between the two corporations. In 1994 he became the president and CEO and ultimately Chairman of the Board of Pharmacopeia in Princeton, NJ, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in combinatorial chemistry. He also held the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors at Neurocrine and Celator, two other biopharmaceutical companies. He was a director on the boards of USP, Impath, Cytogen, and Genencor as well. He was also a patron of the arts, serving on the boards of the McCarter Theater in Princeton, NJ and the Arizona Theater Company in Tucson, AZ. 

Joseph is predeceased by his wife of 45 years and mother of his 3 children, Mary Jean Mollica, who passed away in 2009. In 2016 he married Dorothy Sellers of Wilmington, DE. They resided in Tucson AZ and Bay Head, NJ.  

He is survived by his wife Dorothy (Dottie) Sellers, his daughters and sons-in-law Linda and Andrew Lippman, Christine and John Hong, his son Michael Mollica, his grandchildren Caroline, Sarah and Joseph Lippman, Sam and Ben Hong, his step-daughter Lindsay Sellers and her husband Greg Ortman, and their children Zach and Katie Ortman. 

After more than 40 years of dedication to work and global business travel, in retirement his focus shifted to his family and a more thorough pursuit of his joy of adventurous travel and trekking with Dottie and time with his grandchildren.  Joseph loved to play tennis, hike, and ride his bicycle absolutely everywhere. He was an avid bridge and poker player, and read several newspapers daily.  

Joseph will be buried along side Mary Jean in a private graveside funeral service at the Pennington Cemetery in Pennington, NJ. Donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association in memory of Joseph.