Vito "Victor" J. Federici

Vito Joseph was born on May 21, 1932, in Little Ferry, New Jersey, to Vito and Josephine (Caggiano) Federici. He was the third of four children born to the immigrant couple, Vito senior hailing from the small village of San Fele, in the mountainous Potenza province of Italy, and Josephine most probably from the nearby town of Castelgrande.

Two years after he was born, in the depths of the Great Depression, the family was compelled to leave their small New Jersey farm and relocate to Jackson Heights, Queens. Vito, who in later years preferred to be called “Victor” or “Vic,” enjoyed telling stories of growing up in Jackson Heights. Although times were lean, he and his friends would use imagination and industriousness to find fun and make mischief. One of his favorite pastimes was playing stickball in the streets with broom handles and errant tennis balls they would collect outside the Jackson Heights Tennis Club.

At about 12 years of age, Vic began working as a coat check clerk at the famed Carlyle Hotel, and often travelled back and forth to Manhattan on his own at this young age. He held a variety of jobs in his youth, including working in a print shop, a clerk in the local pharmacy, and a driving instructor at his cousin’s driving school. He proudly served in Korea during the Korean War in the Medical Corps. Through the example of his parents, he was taught early on that the American dream could be achieved by hard work and ingenuity. His father taught him to work hard, take pride in his work and honor his country and the opportunities it offered. His mother taught him to save, to invest wisely and to never be wasteful.

In 1965, he married his student from the driving school, a newly arrived Finnish beauty named Asta Julku. Together they had four children, Kristin, Karin, Kevin and Kenneth. Vic sought refuge from city life and moved his young family back to his roots in New Jersey, where he could instill in his children a love of nature and gardening. Vic was an early pioneer who advocated recycling, composting and organic gardening decades before it became fashionable.

Vic pursued many business ventures. He was co-owner of the iconic Rock Oak Lodge in Sparta, which offered German cuisine and entertainment, attracting guests from the tri-state area. He owned and operated the A&L Honda motorcycle dealership on 14th Street in Manhattan, Caravel Coffee and Tea Company, produced and sold Chrysal, an environmentally friendly cleaning product once used to clean the walls of the Lincoln Tunnel, manufactured rubber mats from recycled tires, sold bicycles and metal detectors, and eventually worked in sales for Portasoft, Aqua Tech and Jayson water treatment companies. He was a fixture inside the vendor tents selling water treatment systems at the Sussex County Fair every August. Vic also enjoyed following and investing in the stock market, was a fervent armchair politician and lifelong fan of the underdog New York Mets, Jets and New Jersey Devils. His entrepreneurial spirit never diminished and he continued to explore business opportunities and mentor anyone who would listen about product innovation, health and environmental issues, sports and any other topic under the sun that sparked his interest. He was a master storyteller and earned the devotion of many.

As an answer to his prayers, Vic reunited with his first son, Michael, and enjoyed a close relationship with him and all his children. His family and diverse circle of friends were his bedrock. He was the first to visit someone in the hospital, attend a funeral, perform favors for local businesses and friends, or replace a tattered American flag that he might come upon in his travels. He also had a curious habit of loading up the cars of family members with reclaimed merchandise from the “goody bins” of local businesses. He enjoyed making the rounds with his good friend Dave, perhaps visiting the junkyard or the ShopRite where everyone knew him by name. He was always coming up with another project for his devoted nephew Lawrence and would rejoice when family would visit and take a swim in the backyard pool or pick tomatoes from his garden.

A legend has departed from our midst but his legacy lives on through his children, grandchildren, great-grandchild, nieces, nephews and orbit of friends who were touched by his life.The lion sleeps tonight.

A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, December 19, 2022 at the Northern New Jersey Veterans Memorial Cemetery 75 North Church Road Sparta, NJ 07871.

In lieu of flowers, kindly send donations to the Northern N.J. VA Cemetery, https://www.nnjveteransmemorialcemetery.org/ or the Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice, https://karenannquinlanhospice.org/

Online condolences may be made offered to the family at www.smithmccrackenfuneralhome.com