Joseph B. Skaff

Joseph “Joe” Beshara Skaff ,77, of Franklin Lakes, formerly a forty-three year resident of Wayne, passed away Sunday, July 10, 2022.

He was born to Joseph and Esperanze Skaff in Brooklyn, New York and was raised in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. Joe graduated High School, where he played on the basketball team with the Class of 1964.

Joe worked for the John Hancock Insurance Company in Brooklyn which led him to work at Fanning Personnel where he began placing employees in various job functions.  He found his career there realizing this was something he could do.  When they met with Joe, he told them “I want to work here because I can do what you do.” Joe was hired and found he loved this type of work and was soon placing people into their dream jobs. After Fanning Personnel, Joe later worked for Whitney-Paige Personnel before striking out on his own. He started his own executive search company in 1974 called Salem Associates, which began in the basement of his home in Brooklyn. Joe soon rented office space in Manhattan and his business prospered. Through the 50 years Joe ran his company, it became Salem Executive Search and he worked until the day he passed away.

Joe met the love of his life, Rosemary Tutunjian, at a church dance in Brooklyn. Their first date was at Nathan’s Hot Dogs in Coney Island, followed by the Sonny and Cher movie Good Times, which appropriately featured the song “I Got You Babe”, and ended the night with pizza. Neither wanted the date to end. After a one-year courtship and asking Rosemary’s parents for their daughter’s hand in marriage, Joe took Rosemary out for drinks where he hid an engagement ring in her glass. They married on September 21, 1968 at the Church of the Virgin Mary in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and honeymooned at the Elbow Beach Hotel in Bermuda. Joe and Rosemary had a fun, loving, and devoted 54-year marriage where they worked together to raise the three children they had been blessed with.

Joe’s greatest joy was spending time with his family and friends. His family meant everything to him. His family cherished the Sunday barbecues by the pool, watching Jets games, and recounting stories of his childhood in Brooklyn. He loved spending time with each of his grandchildren, and by recognizing each of their personalities, he would spoil them. He was a true family man. In his free time, he enjoyed singing doo-wop, being an avid golfer, a card player, and providing for his family despite his humble roots. He will be lovingly remembered by them for his easy-going charismatic manner. His kindness and sense of humor gave him the ability to see the best in others. Joe made everyone around him feel special. His presence and smile lit up a room. Joe was welcoming, warm, faithful, funny, and could talk to just about anyone.

Joe was the loving husband of Rosemary; devoted father of Joseph Skaff of Wayne, Maria Camina and her husband Nestor of Wayne, and Brian Skaff and his wife Yvette of Waldwick; he was the cherished grandfather of Christian, Miranda, Alexander, Yasmin, and Mariana; he was the beloved brother of Barbara Akel, Adele Bache, Mary Vassile, and Victoria Hansen. Joe will be dearly missed by his brother-in-law John Tutunjian and his sister-in-law Florence Tutunjian. He will be dearly missed by his nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations to St Jude Children's Research Hospital would be greatly appreciated.