Joseph (Joe) Grillo, 94 years young, died suddenly on November 4th at the Greenspring retirement community, in Springfield, Virginia. Joe had celebrated his 94th birthday just one week before and was convalescing from recent hip surgery.
Joe was born in Seward, Pennsylvania, on October 29, 1917. As a young man he joined the U.S. Army and later the U.S. Air Force, and served during World War II in North Africa and Italy. He became a Lieutenant Colonel specializing in logistics, serving tours in Guam, Japan, and the United States. When Joe retired from the military he joined the government as a civilian employee at the Pentagon.
In retirement, Joe and his wife Betty traveled to Europe and other countries and visited friends and relatives in the United States. As his wife’s health declined Joe was there to support her until she passed away in April 1996. Since that time Joe spent most of his time enjoying retirement and his grandchildren.
One of Joe’s accomplishments that he relished was initiating legal action that led to the 1992 Virginia Supreme Court ruling requiring condominium owners' associations to disclose financial records. He sued to force a high-rise complex in Alexandria to divulge the salaries of its employees, and later won the ruling which had implications for the financial transparency of community associations nationwide.
Joe, or Grandpa as he was known, is survived by his four children, Elizabeth Olson of Chevy Chase, MD; Joseph Grillo of Hillsboro, OR., Christine Grillo of Ellicott City, MD, and David Grillo of Alexandria, VA; and a sister, Santa Maria Krupa of Johnstown, Pa., and five grandchildren living in Virginia, Florida, Oregon, and Maryland.
Visitation will be held on Thursday, November 10th from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. and again from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. at the Demaine Funeral Home at 5308 Backlick Road in Springfield, Virginia. Funeral Mass will be Friday, Novemebr 11, 2011 at 1:30pm at St. Lawrence Catholic Church 6222 Franconia Rd. Alexandria, VA 22310. Burial Service will be held in February 2012 at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA. Transportation for Greenspring residents will be available for the early viewing.
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