August 3, 1949 �" November 15, 2012
Joe left us all too soon, leaving us with memories of his smile, his generosity, kindness, and wonderful singing voice. He was a longtime member of the SF Gay Men's Chorus (since 1991), Singers of the Street, and the San Diego Gay Men's Chorus.
Joe brought his gifts to the SFGMC and its ensemble The Lollipop Guild for many years, and more recently to SOS, a choir of San Franciscans affected by homelessness. Although not himself homeless, he offered his talents to get the group up and running. As well as singing, he played guitar and was an accomplished arranger. His choral arrangements have been performed locally, nationally, and as far away as Melbourne, Australia.
Joe worked for several companies including IBM, Buck Associates, and Visa before discovering his true love of nursing. In 2002, he went back to school at City College of San Francisco and got his LVN license in 2003. He leaves behind his friends Michael Levy, David Dehner, Jeanne Halloran (his SF Symphony buddy), Herb Westphalen of NYC, Steve Wolf of Seattle, John Sheehan of Las Vegas, Kathleen McGuire (former director of SFGMC and founder of SOS), Tom Mayer and Luiz Netto of SF, first cousin Mary Stonaker of Boston, brothers Brian (Rosanne) and David (Donna-May), nephews John, Bob, and Jim. Services were held in Reading, PA. Friends plan to hold a memorial in SF, contact mailto:[email protected] for more info.