[TI] Joe Longo Sr. obituary

[M GILL]

I  They are a big family between the Longo's and Battaglias.Know the family but was unable to make it to the wake and funeral.
If anyone on the list is related to them, contact me off line.
Madeleine


--- On Sat, 9/20/08, Barbara Jenkins <hjenkins at SW.rr.com> wrote:

> From: Barbara Jenkins <hjenkins at SW.rr.com>
> Subject: [TI] Joe Longo Sr. obituary
> To: TerminiImerese at comunesofitaly.org
> Received: Saturday, September 20, 2008, 1:49 AM
> http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/502076
> 
> Joe Longo: A life of food and family TheStar.com - GTA -
> Joe Longo: A life 
> of food and family
> Co-founder of grocery chain remembered as a `great
> merchandiser' who loved 
> to celebrate
> 
> September 19, 2008
> Dana Flavelle
> Staff Reporter
> 
> Joe Longo Sr., merchandising whiz, family man, and Santa to
> scores of sick 
> children, died on Monday after a lengthy illness.
> He was 70 years old.
> With brothers Tommy and Gus, Longo co-founded what is now
> one of the largest 
> independent grocery chains in the Greater Toronto Area. It
> bears their last 
> name.
> "Joe was always one who loved life, who loved to
> celebrate, and it was 
> always around food and family," said his nephew,
> Anthony Longo, who now runs 
> the family business.
> Joe Longo Sr. was also a great merchandiser, Anthony said.
> "He was the guy 
> who pulled together the various produce that made the store
> appealing to 
> customers. We have an award named after him for the best
> merchandiser in the 
> company."
> Born July 24, 1938, in Termini Imerese, Sicily, Longo came
> to Canada in 1951 
> at the age of 13.
> In 1956, he opened a fresh fruit and vegetable stand with
> his brothers on 
> Yonge St. at Castlefield Ave.
> The original store is long gone, but the company has since
> grown to a chain 
> of 17 modern grocery stores from Burlington to Markham,
> plus an online 
> delivery service.
> Most of Longo's corporate expansion took place after
> 1982, when the second 
> generation started entering the business. Until then, the
> company had three 
> stores.
> Seventeen members of the extended Longo family now work for
> the firm, 
> including three of Joe's children and various in-laws.
> Anthony, president and chief executive officer of company,
> said everyone in 
> the family gets to know the business.
> "I grew up stocking the shelves of our stores,"
> he recalled at a news 
> conference two years ago to unveil a new downtown location.
> Still known for fresh fruit and produce, the compact stores
> - roughly 
> one-third the size of a conventional supermarket - also
> carry a range of 
> gourmet foods alongside everyday basics.
> On Longo's corporate website, Joe is described as a man
> of passion and 
> vision, with a sense of humour and a dedication to
> philanthropy.
> For many years, he dressed up as Santa and entertained sick
> children at 
> Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital, Anthony recalled yesterday.
> He loved car racing and owned vintage cars, including a
> 1986 Corvette.
> Joe is survived by his wife of 42 years, Teresa, his four
> children, Rose, 
> Jenny, Anthony and Joseph, and five grandchildren.
> The funeral is to be held at 10 a.m. today at St.
> Raphael's Roman Catholic 
> Church in Burlington. In lieu of flowers, donations may be
> made to the 
> Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital Foundation in Burlington.
> Funeral arrangements are being handled by Glen Oaks
> Memorial Gardens, in 
> Oakville. 
> 
> 
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