Obituary of Joseph Thomas Piemont

Born in South Orange, NJ on June 20, 1923, Joseph Thomas Piemont was the eldest and first American born child of an Italian immigrant.  As a child, he and his brother helped their father clean the offices of Wall Street firms during the Depression era.  He was an excellent student, captain of his high school football team and class president.  Joe graduated first in his class at Rutgers University then served as a Naval officer in the South Pacific for two years during WWII.  After the war, with the help of the GI Bill, he was accepted to Harvard Business School and achieved an MBA, graduating near the top of his class.  His professional career began with General Electric and the list of firms and industries he went on to work in is impressive and extensive.  By the 1970s he was an independent management consultant before that was common and venture capitalist before the term was coined.  He retired from daily work activity at the age of 65 but continued to consult on a limited basis for an additional 20 years.  His life personifies the American Dream.

Joe passed away on May 28, 2018.  He is survived by his four children: Anita, Joseph, Jeffrey and Steven and by 5 grandchildren: Alex, Daniel, Benjamin, Lauren and Erin and great grandson Soren.  He is also survived by the light and love of his life, his wife of 72 years, Bernie.  The love and tenderness they showed each other every day is the stuff of fairytales.  But it was real.

There will be a remembrance gathering at The Cypress of Charlotte Clubhouse on 6/9/18 from 3-5 pm.  Joe will be remembered as a husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather.  Scholar, teacher, mentor, friend.  Golfer, fly fisherman and storyteller.  He was resilient and persistent.  He was our hero and greatest fan. And he was a true gentleman in every sense of the word.  If it is possible to sum up the impact Joe had on all who knew him with one word, it would be: indelible.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Joe's memory to a charity of your choice.