Joseph Parillo Jr.

Parillo, Joseph Jr. SCHENECTADY Joseph Parillo Jr., 84, longtime community activist and political figure, passed away in the presence of his loving family on December 14, 2006 at Kingsway Arms Nursing Center. Joe was born in New Haven, Conn., the son of the late Giuseppe and Rosina Cuttarelli Parillo. Joe graduated from Mt. Pleasant High School and obtained bachelor of science degrees in both finance and accounting and business education from Bryant College in Providence, R.I. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Christine DeMidio Parillo; his sister, Angela Parillo Starsiak (Ernest); and his three loving and devoted children, Rosemari Kerwin, Dr. Jack (Cindy) Parillo and Joseph (Alicja) Parillo. He was also the devoted grandfather of Daniel Kerwin and David, Elizabeth, Michael and Kathleen Parillo. Many special nieces and nephews also survive him. His brother, Jack, and sister, Agnes Parillo Jankowski, predeceased him. Joe served his country in World War II as a member of General George Patton's Third Army. He served in all five major battles of World II, including landing on Utah Beach on D-Day, the Battle of the Ardennes and the Battle of the Bulge. He participated in the liberation of Dachau concentration camp. Joe was an artillery specialist and won military awards including gold stripes for having served overseas for two years, of which over 365 days were spent in battle. He was employed for many years at the General Electric Company in Schenectady. He then enjoyed a second career as clerk to the board of the Schenectady County Legislature. Joe was active in Republican politics, serving as vice-chairman of the Schenectady County Republican Committee and as administrative assistant to then Congressman Daniel E. Button, 29th Congressional District. He was appointed by the late Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller as a member of the Capital District Transportation Authority and continued in the role of member, as well as chairman, under both Governors Mario Cuomo and George Pataki. He also served on the steering committee of the Schenectady Transportation Center. Joe was a member of many fraternal, civic and community organizations. He served as a past chairman, vice-chairman and board member of the Schenectady County Red Cross, as well as past commander and adjutant of American Legion Post 1091, past member of the Veteran of Foreign Wars 357 and Italian-American Veterans Post 3. He was a past president of the Rotterdam Kiwanis, past member of the board of United Way and the Schenectady County Alcoholism Board. Joe was also actively involved in Gabriele D'Annunzio Lodge #321 of the Order of the Sons of Italy in America. He served as president of the New York Sons of Italy, past president of the New York State Grand Lodge and national treasurer. He was a member of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Schenectady. He was a past president of the Holy Name Society. He served in various roles of parish lecturer and commentator as well as member of the League of the Holy Family and chairman of the parish finance committee. He was also a member of the Carmelite Guild. A recent milestone for him was the pleasure of living to see his grandson, Daniel's graduation from Albany Law School. Calling hours will be at the DeMarco-Stone Funeral Home, 1605 Helderberg Ave., Rotterdam, N.Y. on Sunday, December 17 from 4-7 p.m. Interment and graveside services at the Saratoga National Cemetery will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Joe's memory to the Schenectady Chapter of the American Red Cross or the Challenger Learning Center of the Capital Region, PO Box 1194, Schenectady, NY 12301. The Challenger organization is a not-for-profit educational program promoting excellence in math and science and serves elementary and middle school students regionally. The Parillo family would like to thank the staff of Kingsway Arms Nursing Center for their professional and devoted care.