Monroe mourns local victim of terrorism

Mourners filled the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Spotswood to celebrate the life of Joseph Giaccone.

By: Nick D’Amore
   MONROE — Family, friends and acquaintances joined in celebrating the life of Joseph Giaccone at a memorial service Sept. 28 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Spotswood.
   Mr. Giaccone, 43, a vice president of the Cantor Fitzgerald financial trading firm, was killed Sept. 11 when planes hijacked by terrorists struck the World Trade Center. His office was on the 103rd floor of Tower No. 1.
   Many mourners filled the church, including Monroe Township Superintendent Ralph Ferrie, members of the Monroe High School faculty and the entire cheerleading squad, of which Mr. Giaccone’s 14-year-old daughter, Alex, is a member.
   Caren Castaldo, a student assistance counselor, was one of the many members of the high school faculty who attended.
   "It was nice to see the support of administration and staff and the entire cheerleading squad. It meant a lot to Alex and her family," said Ms. Castaldo.
   Ms. Castaldo said cheerleading coach Jean Gorden organized the effort to bring the entire squad to the service. Freshman, junior varsity and varsity teams were bused to the church.
   The Rev. Harold Hirsch presided at the service.
   "There are no words to say at a Mass that can truly encompass what we feel," he said, also expressing the sorrow of the entire parish clergy.
   Reading a passage from Psalm 46, he said, "We will not fear, though the earth changes."
   The Rev. Hirsch went on to explore the nature of such tragedies and reactions to them.
   "If a man has inalienable rights, he also has inalienable obligations. Without obligations, we would have anarchy, tyranny and revolution," he said.
   The perpetrators and supporters of such of acts like the ones in September look at America’s wealth and freedom and feel "a shame that burns within and fuels their hatred. The World Trade Center stood as a symbol of financial power. The Pentagon was a symbol of our military might," said the Rev. Hirsch.
   "It was evil for those men to kill themselves. They had no right to do so. Their act was evil in and of itself and nothing can justify it," he said. "The killing of innocent people is an unqualified evil in the eyes of God."
   The Rev. Hirsch then addressed Mr. Giaccone’s family and friends.
   "We gather to pray for the repose of a young man, a member of a large family, who passed away innocently in an act of violence that will result in more violence," he said.
   "We pray that the sadness of his death will give way to the brightness of his rebirth," he said.
   Mr. Giaccone was remembered by his family as an unpretentious and generous man. His brother-in-law, Keith Seiden, described Mr. Giaccone as a quiet, understanding and patient person who worked in a tough and competitive field.
   Sondra Giaccone, Mr. Giaccone’s wife of 17 years, said he was a sweet man. In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Giaccone is also survived by a 10-year-old son, Max.