Obituary of Joseph Venti

Joseph Venti, retired Department Head at North Reading High School passed away at the Winchester Hospital on Saturday night, December 13, 2014. He was 88 years old. Joe was born in Ortona dei Marsi, Italy, which was located in the mountains east of Rome. At the age of 11, his family came to the United States seeking a better life. Unable to speak English they lived with family in the North End. Later, his family settled in Medford. Joe learned English and graduated from Boston Latin High School. He then served in the Army during the final year of World War II. Education was a very important part of Joe’s life and he went on to earn a degree in Romance Languages from Boston University and later a Master’s Degree from Harvard University. It was only natural for Joe to become a teacher. He spent over 30 years teaching French, Italian, and Spanish at North Reading High School. At the time of his retirement, he was the Department Head of the Foreign Language Department. Teaching was more than just his job, it was his passion. He shared his love of language and different cultures with all his students. He also arranged student trips to countries like Mexico, Italy, France, and Spain so his students could better appreciate the vernaculars and ways of life. Joe was often described as patient, mild mannered, humble, knowledgeable, and loving. He was an avid reader and much preferred books of substance over a television program. John Le Carre was one of his favorite authors. He liked being outside whether it was on the beach, swimming, walking, of just sitting on his back deck appreciating the warmth of the sun and nature’s sounds. One of his favorite trips was when he took his sons to Italy to see his home town and meet his childhood friends. He was a longtime member of the Saugus Knights of Columbus. He enjoyed living in Woburn for the past 53 years, raising his family, and being a part of his 2 granddaughter’s lives. Joe was the loving husband of the late Angela Venti (DePlacido). He was the loving father of Paula Rigby & her husband Bill of Burlington, Carla Venti of Saugus, Mark Venti & his wife Jeannine of Woburn, and Joseph Venti of Woburn. He was the beloved Brother of Virgilio Venti & his late wife Marie of Woburn, Eda Venti Orr & her late husband Bernard of Billerica and dear brother-in-law of Peter DePlacido & his wife Louise, Gaetano DePlacido & his wife Julia, Ann Fabiano & her late husband Nicholas all of Saugus, and Anthony Deplacido & his fiancé Diane Recchia of East Boston. Joe was the cherished Grandfather of Nicole and Jillian Rigby. Also survived by many nieces and nephews. Funeral from the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (Exit 34 off Rt. 128, Woburn side) on Monday, Dec. 22 at 9 a.m. Followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Anthony’s Church 851 Main St., Woburn at 10 a.m. Visiting hours Sunday 5-8 p.m. Interment in Woodlawn Cemetery, Everett. Memorial donations in Joe’s name may be made to Winchester Hospital or North Reading High School Foreign Language Department. Family Remembrance by Carla Good morning friends and family, we would like to thank you for being here today, to honor Joseph Venti, (pause a second) son, husband, father, father-n-law, papa, brother, brother-n-law, uncle, friend, teacher, mentor, linguist, scholar, lover of the written word There are so many words to describe dad’s character, as is stated in Galatians 5:22-23, “but the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. These are the qualities that truly exemplified who he was, and expounded thru whatever he faced in life, to his death. Dad was born in the Apennine Mountains in a rural farming town of Ortona Dei Marsi, Italy. Our dad was a man of many accomplishments; including alter boy at his church where he on many occasions brought his younger brother Virgil to help ring the bell. At 11 years old dad moved with his family to the United States, specifically the North End. He enjoyed the boat ride over and made friends with the captain and the crewmembers, as a matter of fact, the captain took him under his wing and the crewmembers also allowed him to tag along. He dined at the captain’s table each day. Once in Boston, the big city and a huge language barrier immediately challenged him. Because he knew no English he was placed in the first grade and throughout the years demonstrated his scholastic ability by achieving honor role at Boston Latin High School and ultimately graduated at the same age as his peers. When WWII broke out, he answered the call willing to give up his life for his country and was drafted into the army. While dad was in boot camp, WWII ended and he was assigned to occupational duty. His ability to speak Italian got him assigned to Italy. During his furloughs, he would return to his hometown to visit friends and family. Because he had a license to drive, he was assigned as a driver to a medical doctor. Dad seemed to think that his experience at a pharmacy back home worked in his favor. After being discharged dad went back to the states and took full advantage of the GI Bill of Rights. He pursued an undergraduate degree at BU and his master’s degree at Harvard University. While dad was proud of his accomplishments he never boasted about them, because he was a modest humble man. This is when he fell in love with the romance languages. After many years of education, he went on to become a teacher: a profession, which he was very passionate about. He was the head of the Foreign Language Department at North Reading High School, and taught French, Italian and Spanish. Within that time, dad met and married the love of his life, Angela and had four loving children and was blessed with 2 beautiful grand daughters, the apple of his eye! Dad was very influential in the lives of his students and was very well liked. As was confirmed by one of his ICU nurses, Mademoiselle Elaine, who said he was a favorite teacher in the school. Throughout his life he enjoyed traveling. His last and most memorable trip was to his hometown with his wife, 2 sons and daughter in law. Dad was an avid reader; you would often find him absorbed in the stories that he was reading, passionate about the words written on the page. In later years he would only read books written in Italian. He also had a gift for writing. Mom always had dad write the messages on cards, the words flowed thru his hand so eloquently. This is the legacy our father carriers on: A man who lived every day with Love, Patience, Kindness, Gentleness, Faithfulness, Goodness, Self Control and Peace. We take comfort knowing our dad is at peace and at rest, for he is absent from the body and present with the Lord. Our hearts are filled to overflow with all the love and prayers you’ve shown and given our family. Papa – Ti Amiamo Sempre - ci rivediamo presto Dad, we love you always and we’ll see each other soon