Daniel K Depto

Daniel K. Depto, of Ravenna, OH passed away on September 15, 2026 at the age of 61. He was born on May 10, 1965, the son of the late Ronald and Mary Ann (Malenick) Depto of Northern Cambria, PA. He is survived by his brothers Ronald, husband of Mary (Dunchuck) of Northern Cambria, PA; Daron, husband of the late Darlene (Rote) of State College, PA; niece, Carly Depto of Pittsburgh, PA and his unofficial brother, Bob Rosen of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He is also survived by aunts, uncles, numerous cousins and friends.

As a child growing up, Dan enjoyed playing sports, especially football with his friends. Dan also loved music as a child and always wanted to play the drums. His father who was a very accomplished musician, however wanted him to learn to read music so he took saxophone lessons. After taking saxophone lessons for four years, Dan convinced his Dad to buy him a set of drums. He taught himself to play the drums by playing along with music on the radio and on records. At the age of 12, Dan began to play in several area bands and used to joke saying that he saw the inside of more bars before he was 21 than most people see in their lifetime. Unfortunately, once Dan went off to college and then started to work for a living he was unable to play in bands as much as he would have liked to. He played his last live performance on New Year’s Eve 1987.

He was also a very good student in school where he loved to study math, science and history. Dan graduated from Northern Cambria High School in 1983. He was ranked number 1 in his class during his junior and senior years and was the only male student in his graduating class that finished in the top ten of his class along with being a member of the National Honor Society.

After graduating from high school, Dan attended Penn State University where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering in May of 1987. Because of a recession in the Petroleum Engineering industry, he was not able to find a job. Dan worked for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation as a roadway condition inspector for two summers while attending college and was thinking about going back to school in the fall to get a Civil Engineering degree. While visiting with his uncle who lived in the State of Maryland shortly after he graduated from college, his uncle told him that the economy in Maryland was booming, and with an engineering degree, he felt that Dan should be able to find a job quite easily. When his uncle returned to Maryland, he sent Dan copies f the Baltimore Sun’s classified section. Dan noticed that there were three entry level inspector positions available. Hoping to use his experience working with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, he sent his resume to apply for these positions. Of the three companies that Dan applied to, he got a rejection letter from one company, never heard from another company, and received a phone call from the president of the third company. The president asked Dan; “Why does a Petroleum Engineer want to come and work for me?” To which Dan simply replied; “Because I need a job”. The president of the company said that if Dan wanted to come to Maryland, he would talk to him. Dan went down for the interview in July. During the interview after looking at Dan’s transcript, the president of the company said to Dan that because he had an engineering degree that he could use him in the office to which Dan replied; “I don’t know anything about designing roads and bridges”. To which the owner replied; “Well if you want to learn, I’ll teach you”. Two weeks later, Dan started to work for Wilson T. Ballard Company in Owings Mills, Maryland as an Engineering Technician.

The Wilson T. Ballard Company started Dan out doing simple roadway design tasks, and then continued to give him more challenging tasks as time went on. Dan struggled early on because the Civil Engineering terminology was so much different than the Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering terminology he learned in college. Through his hard work and a lot of help from so many wonderful people at the Wilson T. Ballard Company, Dan was soon designing his own roadway projects. After a few years of working, Dan still was considering going back to college to obtain a degree in Civil Engineering until one day his boss told him that he would be wasting his time because he already knew more than a graduating Civil Engineer would.

It was at the Wilson T. Ballard Company that met his ‘unofficial brother’ Bob Rosen. The two became immediate friends because of their common background, beliefs and their strong faith. Little did Dan know at the time that Bob would be the person who would have the greatest impact on him for the rest of his life.

Bob left the Wilson T. Ballard Company in 1990 to move back to his home state of Ohio where he accepted a position at the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT). When visiting Bob in 1992, Bob gave Dan an application for employment with the Ohio Department of Transportation. Dan filled it out and was hired by ODOT in 1992. Shortly after he started working for ODOT, Dan took his Professional Engineering exam in Civil Engineering. Since he studied Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering in college, this was the first Civil Engineering exam that he ever took. Dan passed the exam on his first attempt and became a licensed Professional Civil Engineer in 1993. Dan worked for ODOT for 31 years before retiring at the end of 2023 to take care of his mom who came to live with him after Dan’s dad died in 2021.

During his life, Dan was the kind of person who always had a smile on his face. He had a great sense of humor with a laid back yet upbeat and infectious personality. He believed that his whole purpose in life was to make people happy. He was always reminding people to Keep Smiling and was always asking people where their Happy Level was. In his spare time, Dan enjoyed working out and playing golf with his friends.

Dan was a man of strong catholic faith. Dan was an active member of Immaculate Conception Church in Ravenna where he served as a greeter, an usher, an adult altar server and a member on the Loaves and Fishes program as well as the Evangelization Committee. When he received his cancer diagnosis, Dan was at peace because he knew that God’s will would be done.

Dan was truly an incredible person. Whether it be teaching himself to play the drums or learning an entire new discipline of engineering, Dan showed that nothing is impossible as long as you work hard and have the determination to achieve your goals.

Visitation will be from 2 PM to 5 PM Sunday, September 20, 2026 at the Shorts Spicer Crislip Funeral Home Ravenna Chapel. A funeral mass will be held at 11 AM on Monday, September 21, 2026 at Immaculate Conception Church (PLEASE MEET AT THE CHURCH). There will be a celebration of life luncheon immediately following the mass at Bishop Tobin Hall at Immaculate Conception Church. Additional calling hours and service will be held at Moriconi Funeral home in Northern Cambria, Pennsylvania. Condolences and memories of Dan may be shared at www.sscfuneralhomes.com.