By Donald Wittkowski
Robert Desiderio was just 4 years old when his father, Gerard Desiderio, passed away in 2003. Yet even at that young age, he realized that he had a special dad.
“He was always a great father,” recalled Robert, who is 20 now.
Others also fondly remembered Gerard Desiderio, a larger-than-life figure who was known for his dedication to public service, his gregarious personality and the affectionate bear hugs he would give to friends and family members.
Robert Desiderio, Mayor Leonard C. Desiderio and other members of the Desiderio family joined with about 150 people on Saturday to honor Gerard Desiderio’s memory during an annual fundraising walk in Sea Isle City.
Now in its eighth year, the Gerard A. Desiderio Heart Walk has raised tens of thousands of dollars for the Deborah Heart and Lung Center.
The walk unfolded under cloudy skies along Sea Isle’s oceanfront Promenade. Ten teams of fundraising walkers wore brightly colored T-shirts to designate their companies and organizations.
The Desiderio family and the Sea Isle City Italian-American Club are the principal sponsors of the heart walk. Among those who showed up Saturday was Leonard J. Desiderio, the father of Gerard and Mayor Desiderio.
The mayor used an oversized pair of scissors to cut the ceremonial ribbon to get the walk started. He thanked the crowd and noted that the fundraiser is closing in on $80,000 in donations over its eight-year existence to benefit Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, N.J.
“Deborah does not charge for its care, so this is a great cause,” Mayor Desiderio said of the hospital’s policy of not billing its patients.
Gerard Desiderio was only 43 when he died in 2003 of heart failure. Mayor Desiderio, 62, said his younger brother was a generous man who was full of life.
“He loved people,” the mayor said. “He was a big guy with a big heart. He would always give you a big bear hug. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for you.”
Gerard Desiderio’s accomplishments included serving as the Chamber of Commerce president and becoming the chairman of the Cape May County Republican Club at just 29 years old. He also was a member of Sea Isle’s volunteer ambulance squad.
During one year, he went out on 365 ambulance calls, an average of one a day, Mayor Desiderio noted. In his honor, one of the ambulances is designated No. 45 in honor of Gerard Desiderio’s call sign as a volunteer.
Jim Fusco, the president of Sea Isle’s Commodore Club, a private social club that raises money each year for the heart walk, remembered serving with Gerard Desiderio when they both were officers at the local Italian-American Club in the late 1970s or early 1980s.
“He was a jolly-go-lucky guy,” said Fusco, 72. “I don’t think a lot of things bothered him. I never saw him mad or angry.”
Fusco said he was rummaging through some personal items one day at his home when he found an old black-and-white photo of himself with Desiderio and other officers then of the Italian-American Club.
Realizing that it was a rare photo, Fusco’s first thought was to give the picture to Desiderio’s parents, Carmel and Leonard J. Desiderio, as a keepsake.
“She was thrilled to death. She hugged and kissed me. I’m sure that was the only photo she had from that time,” Fusco said of Carmel Desiderio’s reaction.
For the Desiderio family, it was another fond memory of a man who was honored Saturday – and every year – in the Gerard A. Desiderio Heart Walk.
