Jack Joseph Laplaca

Jack Joseph Laplaca, age 78, of West Milford passed away peacefully on Saturday, January 1, 2022 while receiving the loving care of his family.

Jack was born and raised in Passaic, NJ and was one of two children to Joseph and Mary Laplaca. As a young man, Jack was genuinely devoted to physical fitness and body building.  Immediately after leaving Passaic High School in 1962, Jack started his own business in the physical fitness industry.  Jack’s company was based out of Clifton NJ and was known as Laplaca Fitness.   There, Jack designed a line of weightlifting equipment which he called Natural Motion Gym Equipment.  For many years Jack manufactured and distributed his designs.  As time went on, Jack continued to design, patent, trademark, and license his equipment.  He contracted with a well-known company, Universal Gym Equipment.  Universal licensed many of Jack’s fitness equipment designs over the years and had them distributed all over the world.  Jack continued to design and distribute his multisystem gym equipment until his retirement in 2008.    

As a young boy in the eighth grade, Jack went to school with a young girl named Michele Lombardo.  The two young teenagers became a cute couple and as fate would have it, they stayed together, fell in love, and were married on November 21, 1964.  After Jack and Michele were married at Our lady of Sorrow Church in Garfield, the newlyweds settled in Passaic, NJ.  While living in Passaic, Jack and Michele welcomed the birth of their first son, Joseph.  The family then moved to Garfield where they welcomed their second son, Jack.  As the family grew, they moved to West Milford in 1972 and have been there ever since.

Jack was a member of the Elks Lodge #2236 of West Milford.  He was also a proud lifelong member of the National Rifle Association and enjoyed target shooting at Meadowbrook Rifle and Pistol Club in West Milford.  Jack was not only a devoted father and husband, he was also devoted to his Christian Faith.  He and his family were active members of the Calvary Bible Church in West Milford for many years.  Jack enjoyed bodybuilding as a young man, he also treasured boating and riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle with his friends and local motorcycle clubs.  He and his wife Michele enjoyed traveling throughout the country to various trade show and expos to showcase his innovative gym equipment designs.

Aside from all of Jack’s talents, hobbies, and interest, his greatest passion was for his family.  Jack and Michele cherished an amazing fifty-seven years of loving and loyal marriage. Jack was a unique person with a wonderful sense of humor and was always quick with a joke or a witty remark or retort.  His ability to bring a smile to someone’s face or make someone laugh was truly a gift.  His joyful personality was infectious and he was someone that everyone loved being with.  Jack touched the lives of everyone he met and will be sincerely missed by his family and friends.        

Jack is survived by his wife Michele (nee Lombardo) of West Milford, NJ, two sons; Joseph Laplaca of Deer Park, NY, and Jack Laplaca and his fiancé Michelle Angelo of Passaic, NJ, one brother James Laplaca and his wife Linda of Garfield, NJ, two sister-in-law’s; Doreen Steinberg and her husband Stuart of Wayne, NJ, and Mary Landy and her husband Anthony of Wayne, NJ, one brother-in-law John Cardaci and his wife Roberta of Holmdel, NJ, and many nieces and nephews.