Joseph G. Ferrante Obituary
Joseph Giuseppe Ferrante passed away on November 8, 2024, at Brentwood Rehabilitation in Danvers, Massachusetts. He was born on November 25, 1941, in Isola delle Femmine, Sicily to Vito Ferrante and Anna Lucido.
Joe attended school in Italy through the 8th grade, leaving home at age 16 to join the Norwegian Merchant Marines. He served on the boat Pericles, where he learned to cook. He became a trusted figure to the ship's captain, gaining the nickname "Ferrante on the Bridge" for the amount of times the captain called on him to assist with various duties.
After completing four years of service, his cousin Joe Cardinale petitioned for him to come to the US in 1961. He first went to New York City but found it too fast paced and confusing because he didn't speak English. He went to Monterey, California where he had family, but there were fewer opportunities for work. He returned to New York City and shared an apartment with his friend Nino Bruno.
At the suggestion of Carlo Moceri during a visit to New York City, Joe moved to Gloucester to a house on Essex Avenue for the opportunity to fish and for the St. Peter's Fiesta, falling in love with the city immediately due to the resemblance to his hometown. He met Frances Giacalone in 1964, who he married in 1965. They welcomed their beloved daughter Ann-Margaret in 1972.
Joe had a lifelong passion for the sea and nature, fishing for many years on numerous vessels in the Gloucester fleet, including the Leonard and Nancy, Giacomo F, Vito C, and Vincie and Josephine. He also fished for a number of years every summer for salmon in Alaska. When he was not fishing, Joe also worked as a union laborer, machinist at Ferraz Shawmut, and at LePage's.
Joe loved to travel, and his interests included boating, cars, flying planes, and most importantly, helping others. He loved to sing and was a member of Gloucester's Three Tenors along with Vito Calomo and Tony Verga. He was extremely dedicated to St. Joseph and built and maintained a permanent altar to him in his house on Proctor Street. Joe was extremely proud of his daughter Ann-Margaret and was always dedicated to helping her campaign efforts and other activities in public life.
Joe was predeceased by his parents and is survived by his wife, Frances (Giacalone) Ferrante; daughter, Ann-Margaret Ferrante; brother, Peter; sisters, Rose Viviano and Geraldine Taormina; brother-in-law, Gaspar Giacalone; sisters-in-law, Kathleen Giacalone and Grace Ann (Douponce) Giacalone; cousins, John and Gerry Willette, and numerous nieces and nephews.
A visitation will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.in St. Ann's Church, Holy Family Parish, Gloucester on Friday, November 15, 2024, followed by a Funeral Mass celebrated at 12 noon. The burial will be held in Calvary Cemetery, Gloucester. Relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute to support the Ferrante Postdoctoral Fellowship: http://gmgi.org by Greely Funeral Home, 212 Washington Street, Gloucester, MA 01930.
