Joe was born in Middletown in 1933, the son of John and Josephine (D'Aquila) Virgadaula.  Joe was a talented craftsman, trim carpenter, draftsman and master building contractor learning his skills at Vinal Technical School and at Hillyer College where he majored in architectural design.  Following two years of military service in Japan during the Korean War, Joe began his construction career as a union carpenter. He then ventured out on his own as sole proprietor of Superior Builders for twenty years where he constructed many fine homes in the Middletown area.  Joe gradually branched out and supplemented his construction business with the purchase of multi-family homes and rental properties.  His five children proudly helped their dad whenever they could and learned about construction, renovation and building management while spending quality time with dad. Joe's success in both areas led to a new career at Liberty Bank in Middletown as a senior appraiser for many years.  While there, Joe was most proud of his role as Construction Manager in overseeing the conversion of the old Post Office on Middletown Main Street to new corporate headquarters for Liberty Bank.  He retired from the bank in 1985 as  Assistant Vice President.

More important than his success in business was Joe's profound love of his  family.  He was the devoted husband of Ginny for 63 years, the proud father of 5 children, a doting grandfather/great-grandfather to 11 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren.  It was his family that provided Joe with the greatest source of joy and pride.  He led by example and passed on to his children the value of hard work, self-sufficiency and perseverance.  He was a one-man construction machine always there to lend support and guidance on every type of home improvement project for his children.

Joe was a consummate story teller and enjoyed captivating his audience with detail-laden stories of past exploits, family history and current events.  Facts were sometimes optional; it was the story that mattered…and there were usually smiles and laughs from everyone when the story was finally over.

In his retirement years, Joe was there for every important family event– baptisms, confirmations, birthday parties, sporting events, plays, picnics, graduations, weddings and family breakfasts at the Elks. In an expression of his love of family, Joe spent much of his time making model airplanes and ships for each and every grandchild and greatgrandchild, using nothing but scrap material to demonstrate conservation and creativity.  Each child was there as a helper, learning from Grandpa how to use tools, how to repurpose materials, and to be responsible for selecting a name, a color and decal for each model.  The models are an enduring testament to Joe's love for each of his grandchildren and greatgrandchildren.

Joe's craftsmanship did not end there. He was a perfectionist with a love of local history and architecture. He spent countless hours constructing scale models of the Arrigoni Bridge in Middletown and the Swing Bridge in Haddam.  His designs were based on photographs of each bridge and were constructed to scale.  His bridges were shown on Channel 8 News, won awards at the Durham Fair and were displayed at Middletown City Hall and Portland Town Hall.  Joe's decision to build a replica of the Arrigoni Bridge was in honor of his father John who, as a mason, helped construct the stone abutments supporting the steel superstructure of the Arrigoni Bridge in the late 1930s.

Joe and Ginny spent many years traveling to Mexico, Europe and Florida.  Joe was an avid jazz enthusiast spending a weekend each summer camped out at the Hartford Jazz Festival in Bushnell Park with his wife Ginny, a willing friend or two, a few lawn chairs, earphones and plenty of homemade sandwiches. He also enjoyed attending concerts and performances at the Hartford Public Library, the Wadsworth Atheneum, the New Haven Green and the Middletown Green.  When the music was turned off, Joe usually tuned in to watch, listen to and complain about his beloved New York Mets.  Joe's love-hate relationship with the Mets was passed down to more than one family member.  Large family trips to Shea Stadium were a source of great joy for Joe no matter the outcome of the game. The family was together -laughing, joking and poking fun - fond memories for all.  The family will remember Joe every time the Mets take the field.

Joe was a lifetime member of the Middletown Elks and an original building committee member. He was proud of his long-term affiliation and membership and enjoyed the warmth and friendship of his many friends at the Elks.  He was a regular member of the Middletown YMCA and enjoyed many years there swimming laps in the pool and sharing time with friends.  He was also a parishioner of St. Sebastian's Church.

Joe leaves behind his loving wife and his five children - Joe Virgadula and wife Marina, Stephen Virgadaula, Linda Waller, Lisa McGregor, Laura Quinn and husband, Ed, eleven grandchildren – Louis and Tomas Virgadula, Nicole and Gina Waller, Kelly Puida (McGregor), CJ McGregor, Danny and Lindsey Virgadaula, Matthew, Steven and Kevin Quinn, and 3 great grandchildren – Lucas and Lily Puida, and Molly McGregor, a brother John Virgadaula and wife Debbie of Florida, a caring sister-in-law Mary Danner from Weymouth, MA, and a former daughter-in-law, Wendy Virgadaula.  He was predeceased by his sister Anita Onorati and husband Peter and a son-in-law James Waller.   He also is survived by many loving nieces, nephews, cousins and long-time friends. A memorial service will be announced at a later date.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Portland Fire Department, PO. Box 71, Portland CT 06480.