Sassi remembered as a kind, gentle man

RUMFORD — Joseph A. Sassi is being remembered as a gentleman's gentleman who was always kind and patient.

Sassi, a Rumford native who worked in area schools even after he and his wife, Brenda, retired in 2000, died on Dec. 4, after a valiant battle with colon cancer.

"He is my one and only love of my life," his widow said. "I always admired his kindness and warmth. He was so easy going. I have felt so fortunate to have had this wonderful life with him."

Walter Buotte, a lifelong friend, said the first word that popped into his mind about Sassi was that he was a gentleman.

"Everywhere he went, everyone loved him," Buotte said. "I'm an educator. Joe was an educator. He was God's gift to education. He was unbelievably patient."

Former co-worker Jim Ippolito, a guidance counselor at Mountain Valley High School, said Sassi was critical to the organization of the library at the school decades ago, where he served as librarian for many years.

"He was very approachable and rarely got angy. He was very patient with the kids and awfully nice," said Ippolito, who said several couples at school, including the Sassis and Ippolitos, met monthly for a dinner.

"He was a great guy and a great loss to the community," he said.

Kathy Kellogg, a teacher at Holy Savior School in Rumford, has known Sassi since she was a student in the 1970s when Sassi was a librarian at Mountain Valley.

Since Sassi retired, he has volunteered at her school in the computer lab working with young students.

"It was absolutely adorable. He treated them like his own children," she said.

He often would bring in his extensive Red Sox collection to show the students, and frequently prepared spaghetti using his special sauce recipe for the school's staff.

"We have lost a gem from our community. There was no one like Joe," Kellogg said.

That same sauce recipe, originally from Sassi's father, who was also a resident of Rumford, was also sometimes used for a benefit meal at Black Mountain of Maine, where he served as a board member.

"He was very proud of that recipe and was willing to share," said Roger Arsenault, who has known Sassi for 37 years. Arsenault also serves on the board.

Sassi was also the president of Chisholm Ski Club, and coached cross-country skiing at both the local middle and high schools, among other volunteer activities.

Arsenault said the state's largest cross-country race is held each year at Black Mountain in honor of Sassi''s son, Jonathan, who was killed in an auto accident in 1990. Some of the proceeds from the race go toward Mountain Valley High School scholarships.

"He was always willing to help and had a very kind heart," Brenda Sassi said.

Visiting hours will be from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. at S.G. Thibault Funeral Home in Rumford. A mass of Christian burial is set for 11 a.m., Thursday, Dec. 10, at Parish of the Holy Savior.

eadams@sunjournal.com