Honoring Longtime Members: Joe Novello
Joe Novello (left) with fellow AMHS officers at a 2018 meeting.
By Ray LaVerghetta
As part of our celebrations this year of the 25th anniversary of the Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society, we are looking back on and acknowledging the contributions of some of our long-term members. One such individual is Joe Novello. Joe was born in Abruzzo and immigrated to the U.S., landing in New Jersey. When a job opportunity at NASA-Goddard brought him to the D.C. metropolitan area, he was delighted with his new career adventure, but he missed his family and “paesani” in New Jersey, whose lives very much revolved around Abruzzese traditions and the Italian American Club of Scotch Plains. The founding of the AMHS helped to fill this void. Joe and his wife Joann had gotten to know a number of Italians and Italian Americans through their attendance at Holy Rosary Church and the associated parish events. With the establishment of the AMHS, Joe realized just how many people there were in the DMV who came from his native region of Abruzzo and from his mother-in-law’s birthplace of Molise. He very much enjoyed making connections with them, getting to know them, and learning of their many shared experiences.
After Joe joined the AMHS, it did not take long for him to become one of its most dedicated volunteers and officers. He served as Treasurer for a long time and, in this capacity (as well as in other capacities), sat on the Executive Committee. He served on the Gala Committee and the Hospitality Committee, in which he (and Joann) bought wine, water, soft drinks, supplies, etc. for the AMHS General meetings and other special events. AMHS members looked forward to Joe’s preparation of a porchetta lunch, which he did annually as a fundraiser, usually at a wine tasting event, at which he also showcased his own homemade wine. For many years, Joe was also instrumental in preparing the picnic grounds and facilities at Villa Rosa for the Ferragosto picnic. He also helped the AMHS at the Italian Festival that took place on the streets around Holy Rosary Church. In addition, he played an important part in bringing special programs to the AMHS. He persuaded his colleague, the late Ron Parise, a payload specialist for the Space Shuttle and a descendant of family from Carovilli, Molise, to not only join the Society but to make a presentation or two at General Meetings. Joe also got another NASA colleague, Nobel Prize winning physicist John Mather, to be a guest speaker twice at General Meetings and to conduct a private tour of the Goddard Space Flight Center for AMHS members. One of Joe’s hobbies is photography, and he put it to good use for the AMHS. He was the Society’s official photographer for many of its meetings, events and trips, and he has a treasure trove of pictures from over the years.
Joe feels that the AMHS has made his life better through social interaction with people of common background and interest. Of late, he is particularly happy about the role that the Society has played in the resurgence of the Circolo della Briscola. Joe is enjoying the games very much – he has never forgotten the card skills that he learned in his youth and he considers the activity another way to celebrate Italian culture. He feels indebted to the Society for all the wonderful friends that he has made and all the enjoyable experiences that he has shared with fellow Italians and Italian Americans. And the Society is surely deeply indebted to Joe for his loyalty, hard work and many, many valuable contributions over the years.
Winter 2026