Florida Rep Joseph Casello

WORCESTER, and PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. - Florida State Representative Joe Casello (D-Boynton Beach) a retired Worcester Firefighter, passed away peacefully on July 18, 2025, surrounded by his loving family, following a heart attack. He was 73.

Representative Joe Casello served as a Boynton Beach City Commissioner from 2013 through 2018 for District 4. He was appointed as the Vice-Mayor and then elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2018.

Born in Worcester, Rep. Casello attended public schools in his community. He graduated from Worcester Industrial Technical Institute in 1972 and Quinsigamond Community College in 2002, where he earned an Associate of Science degree. The son of a Navy World War II veteran, Rep. Casello honorably served as a Non-Commissioned Officer in the United States Air Force in the early 1970s. Assigned to the 212th ANG Unit, he was responsible for installing radio transmission sites throughout the country. In 1974, he was appointed to the Worcester Fire Department and promoted to Lieutenant in 1984. Within the Fire Department, he served in many capacities, including arson investigator, working closely with the State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Rep. Casello was a business owner and licensed electrical contractor. He operated Casello Electrical Services, specializing in residential and commercial electrical design and installation.

His civic engagement includes time spent on the Board of Directors of the Palm Beach County League of Cities, as President of the Knollwood Homeowners Association, and as a member of the Palm Beach Sober Home Task Force as well as the Municipal Retirees Association. He also served on the Board of Trustees for JFK Hospital and has volunteered with Feeding South Florida during the pandemic. Drawing on his past experiences as a firefighter and service in the Air Force, Joe has been a strong and vocal champion for first responders, police, and firefighters, as well as military veterans. He has sponsored legislation strengthening medical benefits for firefighters who contract cancer in the line of duty. He also worked with his colleagues to pass a joint resolution allowing the surviving spouses of deceased, disabled veterans to continue claiming the same tax credits to which their families were entitled before death.

Joe is survived by two sisters, Jean M. Casello Deters and her husband Robert of Shrewsbury, Mary A. Goyette and her husband Paul of Somersworth NH; A brother in law, Rik F. Bouges; Nieces, nephews, extended family and a host of friends, both here in Massachusetts and in Florida. In addition to his parents, a sister, Janie F. Bouges passed away in 2022.

Florida Services for Joseph were held August 20th. In Worcester, friends and relatives are invited to visit with the family Friday, September 12th from 4 pm to 7 pm in the MERCADANTE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL, 370 Plantation St. His funeral Service will be held Saturday, September 13th at 10:00 am in the funeral home. Worcester Fire Department honors, Mair Force Military honors entombment will follow in St John Mausoleum. In lieu of flowers memorial remembrances in his name can be made to the Leary Firefighters foundation 33 Park Place, suite 243, New York, New York, 10007 or the Gary Sinise Foundation, Gift Processing Center, PO Box 1858, Merrifield, VA 22116