Joseph John Rizzo

Joseph J. Rizzo (Joe), 79, passed away on September 25, 2024, in Culpepper VA. He is survived by his wife Pamela, children Amy (Jason) and Carrie (Mike), 4 grandchildren, sister Janet (Ettore), as well as nephews, nieces and cousins.

Joe was born to Joseph and Josephine Capella Rizzo on November 15, 1944, on the west side of Buffalo. He had many fond memories of growing up with a large extended family, and often reminisced about the mischief he and his cousins would get into. Joe attended parochial schools and graduated with a BS from Canisius College in Buffalo NY.

His life took a significant turn when, early in his career as a revenue officer, he answered the call for new computer programming trainees with the US government. Over the course of 35 years in the federal government, Joe was on the front lines of the computer revolution, and often marveled at the pace of computing progress as he rose from programmer to division chief before retiring in 2004. He then worked for Insysco of Fredericksburg, VA for an additional 10 years.

On a blind date on Halloween 1974, Joe met Pamela Swearingen. While dating, Pam introduced Joe to her young daughter, Amy. Joe and Pam enjoyed going to Kennedy Center performances and out to dinner where Joe introduced Pam to a variety of ethnic foods for the first time. They married on December 20, 1975, during a winter snowstorm in Buffalo. Joe, a talented bargain shopper, often joked that he got two for one with the marriage, and he raised Amy as his eldest daughter. Pam and Joe welcomed daughter, Carrie, to the family three years later. Joe and Carrie’s shared love of animals and persistent visits to the local animal shelter led to the completion of their family with man’s best friend, Brownie, who greeted Joe daily with unconditional love and tail wags for fourteen years.

Family was the overarching theme in Joe’s life – as the core of his being and his greatest source of joy. A hands-on father, Joe gave his daughters the gifts of logical problem-solving, a sense of self-sufficiency from fixing plumbing to servicing cars, and an abiding respect for the power of hard work. He also had a witty sense of humor, was the king of Dad jokes before it was popular and delighted in being “pun-ny”. Many of us were fortunate to be on Joe’s “email list” when he forwarded curated articles and pieces of advice – sometimes many times a day! – a quiet demonstration that he was always thinking and caring for us. That love of family continued into his favorite family role as a grandfather to Logan, Skylar, Kenyon and Taggert. From endless games of “Go Fish” and dominoes to teaching the kids how to fish at the lake, tinkering in the workshop or helping them to “mow” the lawn, Joe always had time, patience, and caring to share with the next generation.

Joe’s love language was acts of service, and in his family’s eyes, there was nothing he couldn’t make, do, or fix. He built his family custom kitchen cabinets, a backyard playground topped by a treehouse, a miniature Barbie house with intricate details, and a desk to take to college. Joe was talented with woodworking and delighted in spending hours in his extensive, organized shop. Joe also loved exploring his Italian heritage, cooking Italian food, recreating his mom’s pasta e fagioli, famous Christmas cookies, cheesecake and finding the best cannoli and clams for his family to enjoy.

While no one would put Joe and the word “adventure” together naturally, his love for his kids saw him gamely following his wife and daughters to places like Germany, France, Brazil, and London. A family trip to Hawaii was perhaps his favorite travel memory. In 2013, that sense of adventure was truly put to the test, when Pam and Joe built their dream home on a lake in Virginia. The home was definitely Pam’s dream first, but in classic Joe style, he adopted that dream as his own and took enormous pride in bringing it to life. For the past decade, after puttering around the yard, Joe could often be found relaxing on the dock and watching the sun set together with Pam.

While we rejoice that Joe is now in Heaven with endless sunsets, beloved family members and no pesky swans to chase away, the hole he leaves behind will never be filled for those of us whom he loved so well.

Funeral services will be held on Friday October 25 at 10:30am at St Bernadette’s Catholic Church in Springfield VA. We also hope that family and friends will join us in celebrating Joe and the love he gave during a celebration of life on Saturday October 26, 2024 11:30am-2:30pm at the Harbor Club at Fawn Lake, 11311 Longstreet Drive

Spotsylvania VA 22551

Arrangements are being made by Demaine Funeral Home in Springfield, VA, and in lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be directed to the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Lustgarten.org.