Mr. Joseph A. Vitale, Jr. died on Thursday August 5, 2010 at his home in Verona. He was 85.
A Funeral Mass will be offered in St. Aloysius Church, Caldwell on Saturday, August 7 at 10 a.m. Visiting in the Prout Funeral Home, 370 Bloomfield Ave., Verona on Friday from 4 to 7 p.m.
Born in Caldwell, Mr. Vitale was a lifelong Verona resident. He was a 1943 graduate of Verona High School, where he was involved in the early football program. He graduated from Duke University in 1947 with a degree in education and has two Masters degrees from Seton Hall University in teaching and education. Mr. Vitale was a teacher for the Newark Board of Education from 1951 to 1983.
He was one of the founders of the Verona Fifth Downers, served as a High School Football Referee for many years, was instrumental in forming the Verona Community Pool, a member of the Seton Hall Alumni Association, the Verona Park Senior Citizens and the NJEA.
He is the husband of Dolores C. Vitale; he is also survived by his daughters, Joan Keen and her husband Edward, and Nanci Smith and her husband Todd; his grandchildren, Julie, Amy and Robert and his great grandson, Aidan.
