Joseph Giaccone

Obituary of Joseph GiacconeIt all started December 7, 1931. Joseph was born two months prematurely to Virginia Puscedu and Giovanni Giaccone who were originally from Sardinia and Sicily, respectively. Brother to Marie Prost who was seven at the time. She would endearingly call him Jojo and he called her Santina. He grew up in the city of St. Etienne, France located on the eastern side of France bordering Switzerland. During WWII, he was sent to live on a farm for a short time when he was about 9 years old with a family as there was no food to eat in the city. He always shared the story about having to catch the chickens in evenings. This was a very difficult task until he realized if he gave them a little wine, this task became a lot easier.In school, he studied to be a woodworker and play music, his two passions at the time. He became very skillful in both areas. He created many beautiful pieces of furniture. He was very proud that his "dovetails" were always a perfect match and made a very snug joint. His love for music gave him opportunities to attend a conservatory for music in France. The first year was to learn to read music, second year was to learn fingering and finally the third year he could put it all together and play his instrument. Imagine waiting three years to play an instrument! Joseph also served in the French Military playing saxophone in the band. He was stationed in Tunisia, Africa. He would share stories of the extreme heat and gigantic bugs. His favorite stories were of the jokes the band members would play on each other. One time he was ready to march in the band and found his reed was covered in honey making it delicious but almost impossible to play. As he became older, he taught many students his skill and passed along his passion for woodworking. In the evenings and on weekends, he would play in the Big Bands of that time. Jazz, especially Spanish jazz, became his favorite music to play. Because of this love, he visited Spain many times and became fluent in Spanish as well as Italian and French.These passions lead him to having opportunities to come to America. He was chosen to come to the States to work on the cabinetry of large yachts with the famous Direktor brothers in Mamaroneck, NY. He also had an opportunity to design the interior of a famous hotel in Puerto Rico. This job enabled him to continue practicing his Spanish. When he returned to the States, he still needed to work on his English. He began taking English classes in the evenings where he befriended Adolfo. Adolfo's sisters, Clarisa and Blanca, were coming into town to make sure their little brother was doing well away from his homeland of Colombia. One evening, all the students of the English class gathered to welcome Adolfo's sisters. This is where Joseph and Blanca met and their journey together began. They exchanged addresses and wrote to each other for two years. Next time they met was two weeks before their wedding on June 20, 1964. The year of 2014 will be their 50th wedding anniversary.As a married couple, they moved back to New York City. The adventures they experienced together with being in a new country and trying to communicate in three languages were priceless. One story is when Joseph went shopping at the supermarket. He thought he was buying chicken pté for his new bride. When Blanca looked at the can, she asked Joseph what a cat on the label had to do with the chicken pté. With closer examination of the can, he realized he had bought chicken flavored cat food. Nine months later on April 8th, 1965, their only child Jacqueline was born. They continued to live in NYC for the next three years with a brief six months residence in France. The family then moved to Long Island and lived in Port Washington for about 10 years. He continued to design interiors for many places in NYC such as Metropolitan Opera House, World Trade Center offices, and many retail stores such as Gimbel's. He also loved to bowl and with much practice finally bowled a 300 game! On Long Island, Joseph continued develop his passion for going to the beach with an interest in fishing. He caught mackerel, snappers, blue fish, bunkers and eels which filled his fishing stories for the day. Holbrook, Long Island was their next home. This home was further East and included more deep sea fishing. He loved going to the beach and fishing off the jetties or off party boats for any schools of fish that would come in. One of the best stories is when he was walking out onto a jetty in East Hampton and noticed the tide was going out. He looked down at the pools that collected and noticed movement. It was a 25 pound striped bass. He took out his net and scooped it up. He was extremely excited and lucky. His passion for the beach continued as Joseph and Blanca also took many exotic trips to St. Martin, Bahamas, Puerto Rico and Florida. Joseph continued to design interiors for many retail companies. In Bloomingdales, he designed not only their retail stores but also their restaurant, Le Train Bleu. When it was time to open the restaurant, the staff needed someone to record the welcoming announcement as people entered. Joseph was asked to record the greeting, " Bonjour Messieurs et Mesdames ". He also worked and retired from Macy's. He designed many interiors for Macy's but his biggest project was designing the interior and exterior of the Colonie Mall Macy's in Albany, NY. This family of three continued to live in Holbrook until 2004.Joseph welcomed a wonderful, son-in-law, Mark Newman, into the family. This brought him much joy as he could speak French with Mark. March 6, 2005 Joseph's first grandchild, Elsa Aurora, was born. The proud grandparents lived in upstate NY until Elsa was about three years old and they treasured every moment. Joseph would always chase her and say "Elsa, where are you?" in his endearing French accent.Winters are cold in Clifton Park, NY so Joseph and Blanca moved to Ocala, FL in 2007. They bought a home in 2009 in Oak Run and were surrounded and loved by their Colombian family. They became close friends with a number of families in their new community, all of whom continue to be a wonderful support for Blanca. Joseph's sense of humor never weakened, even through his last days at the hospital and rehabilitation facility. Joseph was infamous for asking someone, with a twinkle in his eye, to take him to the beach with champagne. If they didn't, he jokingly said he would call his lawyer. We will truly miss you Joseph!Thank you to ALL the staff at MRMC Hospital and Palm Garden who took care my dad and our family. We truly appreciate all your support over the last several weeks.Also, thank you to Roberts Funeral Home and especially Steed Salls for all their assistance.A photo album celebrating Joseph's life can be viewed at:https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4207221076300.1073741835.1758140698&type=1&l=bfb02950d0Addresses:Blanca Giaccone11581 SW 84th Ave. Rd.Ocala, FL 34481Mark, Jacquie & Elsa Newman1064 Goldfoot Rd.Glenville, NY 12302

Joseph Giaccone

December 31, 1969 - June 11, 2014