Joseph Francis Sacchetine

A cherished life started in Mitford, Massachusetts on January 28th, 1943. Born to parents Chester and Hazel Sacchetine, Joseph Francis Sacchetine started his life journey. He had many siblings, some he knew early in his life and some later in his life, because of divorced parents. Joseph, known by most as “Peter,” had three older brothers; Mario, Geno and Johnny who he grew up with. Joe believed he was the youngest of the brothers but would find out much later in life that he had younger siblings as well, Phyliss, Shelia and Steven. As a much older man, he located them and started a relationship with them that remained an important part of his life.

There is so many parts of Joe’s life that are important to remember him by. Growing up he had a love of books and studying science, specifically outer space and aeronautics. He had always made it clear to his family that he really wanted to be involved in aeronautics in some way. His best friend growing up, Paul Ficco, always knew where to find Joe, which was usually the local Library. Joe, although many people did not know was a musical person. He played guitar as a young man and took lessons for a while. He also played trumpet for his school band. Joe also had interests in automobiles and trains and marveled at the engineering behind them. Even as an older adult, he spent time when he could, going to Airplane and Train museums. When the opportunity came along, he would find his way to Air Shows or to a railroad to watch a rare train rumbling by at high speeds. He was always excited to learn and loved history especially World War II. He himself served in the Army and the Airforce, during the Vietnam Era. Joe loved photography and taking pictures of planes, trains and his family.

During his time in the armed forces, he met his future wife, Karen Richardson. They dated for several months, and Joe decided to pop the question. She of course accepted and they have been married for 55 years. They spent their honeymoon traveling to Canada. Joe himself had lived outside of the country serving some of his time in Guam servicing B-52 bombers. After marrying Karen though, they lived on military bases in Texas and Wisconsin. He eventually was able to get based back in Denver, Colorado and then decided to end his time in the service. He was honorably discharged by both Air Force and Army.

With his earnings and a new job in computer hardware he settled down with Karen buying a house in Thornton, Colorado, a suburb of Denver. They were very happy in their new marriage, but they just did not feel complete. They wanted to fill that house with children, but unfortunately because of a childhood illness, Joe and Karen were not able to have children of their own. They decided to adopt and soon they were blessed with a baby girl they would name Rachel Ellen Sacchetine. This brought joy and love in their house unlike anything they had ever experienced. They wanted to be the best parents they could possibly be and understood that raising their daughter with faith would be the first step to her success in life. They had her baptized at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church. The young family thrived for many of their early years, and Joe was successful in his career working in Louisville, Colorado, at Storage Tek.

He would find a long career with ups and downs until he retired.

Joe would have ups and downs in his career but always found solace in his faith. He enjoyed certain hobbies as a middle-aged man. He loved classic movies, science fiction and World War II documentaries. He had a North West flare where he was so kind with people but was always ready to entertain a debate over politics or history. It could be described that a hobby of his was politics and that he had a special quality that he could argue with people, but never took it personal. He never held grudges towards others and was always quick to forget their transgressions.

As his daughter grew, he developed a loving and enduring relationship with her. Of course, there was always the friction that all fathers and daughters experience, when a father feels his daughter is growing

up too fast. Yet, he always had time for her, and they spent time at malls eating ice cream and shopping or watching the arsenal of military jets at an air show. He was so proud of his daughter and her accomplishments and was always quick to compliment her to his friends and acquaintances. His daughter loved her Dad and always knew he was there to offer her his advice on life. Joe tried to help her whenever he could, no matter the situation. She would eventually meet her husband and start a family. She met her husband Nestor Vigil in high school, dated him for six years and then they were married. This made Joe a very happy man, he had developed a strong relationship with his future son in-law. Joe would now be blessed with something that he never thought would be such a large part of his life.

Rachel and Nestor would have their first child Morgan Vigil. Joe was now a Grandfather and so excited to hold his new Granddaughter. He would be known as Grandpa Joe, and he was ready to give all he could to helping raise this new baby. He spent his time baby proofing his house and preparing to help Rachel and Nestor watch their new daughter. As she grew, he spent a lot of time educating her and teaching her life’s lessons. They loved to go to museums, the zoo and the park to play. He loved to watch Animated Movies and had an excuse to spend some of his available time with his Granddaughter eagerly watching them with her. She adored her Grandpa and loved his smile and witty banter when it came to talking to her about life. Morgan would eventually make him a Great Grandpa when she had a daughter of her own, Avalyn Vigil-Espinal. Three and half years later, he would be blessed with another granddaughter Marisa Vigil.

Marisa was a new challenge for Joe since he now had two granddaughters and only raised one child in his life. He was not sure what the approach would be, so he did many of the same activities as he did with Morgan. What he found was a granddaughter that ended up being his opposite, but a kindred spirit none the less. He enjoyed Marisa’s intelligent approach to subjects and situations that he threw her way. She was able to put a smile on his face when he would engage her in a spirited debate which he loved to do with her so much. He found someone who loved to give it right back to him and often told us that this family found its future lawyer. In fact, this is the direction she is going in, deciding to become a lawyer. Grandpa Joe knew this and planted those seeds and she loves and thinks about him everyday when she engages us in a lively debate. He always had a way to make her smile and make her feel good about being opinionated. Joe would have one more challenge in his role as Grandpa because 4 years later he would have a Grandson Mateo.

Mateo was a whole new approach for Grandpa Joe. He only raised girls his whole life and had the inside in keeping them under control. His grandson was different, because he was a boy and did boy things and had boy ways. He was dirty all the time it seemed, into sports and was always hungry. Joe got to do many activities that he loved to do as a boy. They flew many Styrofoam airplanes right into trees and on top of roofs. He did similar activities with him like the girls, but noticed his grandson was inquisitive and liked to take things apart. He thought that was an interesting aspect to Mateo, that he had a wonderment of how the world worked. As Mateo grew, him and his Grandpa Joe had many private conversations about life and the world. Although Mateo did not always agree with his Grandpa Joe, he loved to listen to his Grandpa’s stories and always came home with a smile. He thought Grandpa Joe was funny and loved to work along side him, whether it was outside or in their basement. He spent a lot of quality time with Grandpa Joe and loved and respected him for the man he was.

There are endless stories that can be shared, how can you put 77 years of life in a few pages. He loved people and always tried to find a way to get along with everyone he met. God meant everything to him, and he did not fear life. He shared so many loving moments with his family in meaningful ways. He was a great friend to all who got to know him. Joe was honest, loving, fair, faithful, intelligent and respected. What more can you ask for from such a good man such as Joseph “Peter” Francis Sacchetine, we love you very much, and we had the best of you here on Earth. God bless you on your walk with our Lord.