Joseph J. Coco

Joseph “Joe” J. Coco, 91, of Lakewood, New Jersey, passed away peacefully on October 4, 2026, with his family nearby. A devoted husband, father and grandfather, educator, coach, financial planner, community leader, and loyal friend, Joe lived his 91 years with an unmistakable zest for life.

Born on June 23, 1935, to the late Charles and Lucille Coco, Joe graduated from St. Joseph High School in West New York, New Jersey. An athlete from a young age, he played football in both high school and college before earning his bachelor’s degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University and later his master’s degree from Georgian Court University.

Education and athletics remained central to Joe throughout his life. He spent many years as a teacher and coach, educating and inspiring students in several New Jersey communities, including Jackson, Manchester, and Point Pleasant Boro. He coached high school football and baseball and devoted countless additional years to coaching children in Little League baseball and softball in Brick.

For Joe, coaching was never simply about the game. He loved teaching, encouraging, and helping young people grow, but perhaps his greatest gift was seeing potential in others, sometimes before they could see it in themselves. He believed in people, challenged them to believe in themselves, and generously shared his time, wisdom, and encouragement without expecting anything in return. Whether offering guidance on the field, advice about life, or lessons in financial responsibility, Joe planted seeds that continued to grow long after the conversations ended. Many of the players he once coached remained close family friends and lifelong friends of his children — a testament to relationships that extended far beyond the playing field. His influence will continue through the lives of the players and young people he mentored, who will carry pieces of his wisdom, encouragement, and spirit forward for generations.

Joe also enjoyed a successful career as a financial planner and advisor with Scott Planning Company, another role perfectly suited to a man who loved people, conversation, and giving advice. There, as everywhere else in his life, clients often became friends and friends became clients. His client list seemed endless, but what mattered most to Joe were the relationships behind the names — connections built on trust, loyalty, and the genuine interest he took in people’s lives.

Joe and his beloved wife, Marge, lived in Brick for 28 years before moving to the Four Seasons community in Lakewood in 1999. Wherever Joe lived, he became part of the fabric of the community. At Four Seasons, he was active in numerous clubs and activities, including bowling, the Men’s Club, golf, and Sports Talk. He proudly served on the Condo Board of Trustees, was a member of the Knights of Columbus, and served his country in the National Guard.

A longtime Roman Catholic, Joe was a parishioner of Visitation Church in Brick, and his faith remained a constant and important part of his life. He continued attending Bible study through the final week of his life, a reflection of the faith that guided him throughout his years.

Joe was, in every sense, a people person. He was outgoing, social, funny, opinionated, and always ready for a conversation — and usually ready to make that conversation a little more interesting. He had an extraordinary ability to talk to just about anyone, anywhere. And somehow, even while traveling in places as far away as Bermuda or Tahiti, Joe would inevitably run into someone he knew — or someone who knew him — from back home in New Jersey. It became one of those uniquely Joe things: no matter how far he traveled, the world somehow always seemed a little smaller around him.

Sports were woven throughout Joe’s entire life. He loved football, baseball, golf, and bowling, and he was a devoted New York Giants and New York Yankees fan. Even retirement could not keep him away from the action. After years of playing and coaching, Joe became a baseball and softball umpire and continued his involvement in football through officiating, finding yet another way to remain on the field and close to the games he loved.

And he did not simply watch sports from the sidelines — he kept playing. Just last season, his bowling team, the Jersey Strikers, took first place among more than 30 teams, an accomplishment that brought him tremendous pride and perfectly reflected the competitive spirit he carried throughout his life.

For his 90th birthday, Joe had the unforgettable opportunity to throw out the first pitch at a Jersey Shore BlueClaws game alongside his four-year-old grandson and namesake, Joe. The two shared the same June 23 birthday, a connection Joe cherished deeply and proudly told to anyone who would listen. Celebrating that milestone together on a baseball field was especially fitting for a lifelong baseball fan, coach, athlete, and devoted grandfather.

That was Joe. One of his favorite sayings was, “You don’t stop playing because you get old; you get old because you stop playing.” He lived those words right up until the end.

He never believed growing older was a reason to stop participating in life. He lived independently and on his own terms for nearly all of his 91 years, fiercely resisting the idea of slowing down. Even when life became more difficult, that independence, determination, humor, and unmistakable Joe Coco spirit remained.

Joe and Marge traveled extensively together, seeing the world and collecting friendships and memories everywhere they went. He was fortunate to retire in his 50s and spend decades enjoying the life he had built — surrounded by family and friends, traveling, golfing, bowling, watching his Giants and Yankees, helping others, and continuing to play.

Near the end of his life, Joe liked to point out that he had already lived well beyond the average lifespan of a man. He had made it to 91, and he told his family that he believed he had “won at life.”

He was right. He was truly blessed.

Nothing important was left undone. Nothing was cut short. By Joe’s own measure, his life had been extraordinarily full — truly, a life well lived. He had traveled, played, worked, coached, helped others, raised a family, made countless friends, and spent decades doing the things he loved. In fact, Joe completed nearly everything on his bucket list — with one notable exception: he never did get his chance to appear on Wheel of Fortune. His was a long, adventurous life, filled with people who loved him and experiences he never stopped seeking out.

Joe often said that if he could no longer regain his strength, help others, play, bowl, and live independently, he was ready for Heaven. His faith gave him peace in knowing that so many family members and friends who had gone before him would be waiting there.

Above all else, Joe loved his family. He is survived by his devoted wife of 63 years, Marjorie; his children, Joseph C., Michael J. (Barbara), Charles R. (Michele), and Kim L. (Joanne); his ten grandchildren, Craig, Samuel, Brielle, Gianna, Jonah, Kyra, Jayla, Bethany, Emily, and Joe; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and friends.

He was predeceased by his beloved sisters, Josephine Grzyb and Pauline West.

His family will remember his stories, his humor, his stubborn independence, his enormous personality, the conversations he could strike up anywhere in the world, and the joy — and occasional chaos — that seemed to follow him wherever he went.

Most of all, they will remember a man who never stopped playing simply because he grew older — a man who, by his own measure and by ours, truly won at life.

A Memorial Gathering will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2026, at D’Elia Funeral Home, 1300 Vermont Avenue, Lakewood, New Jersey 08701. Relatives and friends are invited to gather from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., with a Memorial Service beginning at 3:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Joe’s memory to Disabled American Veterans (DAV), an organization whose mission reflects his respect for service and country:

https://help.dav.org/page/53021/donate/1?locale=en-US