[TI] Joe Longo Sr. obituary

[Sheryl Hartnett]

Could this Longo family be related to Matteo Longo b.1856-1906 m. Gaetana Bova b. 1869-1947?  I believe he may have started the M. Longo Fruit Company in St. Louis, MO.  I did find in either/both the St. Louis City Directories of 1933 & 1936 where it was still in business.

I was told by families that my Grandfather worked at that company, as a fruit packer, after his own little fruit business went out of business during the depression.  I don't know all the facts of this company and have not researched who EXACTLY started it.  I Googled it today and it doesn't bring a result.  So I don't know when it may have gone out of business or changed hands.

Thanks,

Sheryl  :)


--- 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
> Date: 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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