Joseph N Laurita

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Joseph Natale Laurita, of Wayne, New Jersey, on April 20, 2020, at the age of 85.

The son of Dominic and Angelina Laurita, Joseph was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY where he met and married his lifetime sweetheart, Annette "Nettie" Maiano Laurita, when they were just eighteen and fifteen years old.

Joseph and Annette, who shared a birthday, were married for 67 years. They were the proud parents of eleven children,( six sons, five daughters)their spouses and partners, nineteen grandchildren and their spouses, and nine great-grandchildren.

A Korean War veteran with a brilliant mind for engineering and design, Joseph took great pride in his work. One of his greatest professional accomplishments was the invention of the first injection-molded “milk case” which remains in production, it’s perfect design unchanged, to this day.

Those who knew Joseph knew him to be a strong, fearless, driven, and hard-working man who never met an obstacle he couldn’t break through.

Joseph lovingly referred to his wife Annette as “his sweetheart” and would often tell his daughters that they “were all beautiful, but none as beautiful as their mother”.

Joseph, a fierce protector of his family, was known to say that his sons, who called him “the old man” were his pride, and his daughters, who called him Daddy, were his joy.

He loved and accepted the spouses and partners of his children as his own, and took great pride in his grandchildren, who called him Gramps.

His closest loved ones and those who knew him best will miss his bright blue eyes, ( passed down to all eleven children) his big, beautiful smile, the way he laughed at his own jokes, his special Christmas olive sauce, the sound of his Italian music playing on Sunday mornings, and the strongest man they have ever known.

His signature goodbye was “ Daddy loves you..be good”.

Joseph lived his life on his own terms. In the words of Frank Sinatra, in his favorite song, “My Way”...

“Yes there were times, I’m sure you knew, when I bit off more than I could chew...But through it all, when there was doubt, I ate it up, and spit it out.  I faced it all, and I stood tall...And did it my way”....and that he did.

Forever in our hearts.

To celebrate Joseph’s life, memorial donations in his honor are welcomed to Halfway Home Animal Rescue Team PO Box 312

Oakland NJ 07436.  http://www.hharteam.org