Joseph Leone

Dr. Joseph A Leone, MD – Short Hills, NJ. Husband of Nancy Leone. Father of Christian Leone (Jamieson), Erin (Ryan) Blute, Tara Leone, Courtney (Bruce) MacKenzie, Jeffrey Leone (Jamie). Brother of George Leone, James Leone and Victoria Musumeci. Loving Pop Pop to 9 beautiful grandchildren; Noel, Christine, Owen, William, Eloise, Anna, Cameron, Maxwell and Josephine. Joe Leone passed away peacefully on Monday, June 6th surrounded by his family.

Dr. Leone lived and practiced plastic surgery in Northern, NJ for over 50 years. He grew up on his family’s farm in Swedesboro, NJ. He graduated from Villanova University and received his medical degree from Hahnemann University. He completed his residency in Plastic Surgery at St. Barnabas Hospital in Livingston, NJ where he met his loving wife, Nancy, in the hospital’s gift shop. They created a wonderful life in Short Hills where he lived enamored by Nancy, laughing at her jokes every day for 52 years.

These are thoughts from his five children:

It is difficult to succinctly describe a life – but in the case of our father, it is a particular challenge. Our dad lived life to the absolute fullest. He had an incredible personality and a passion for life that was unmatched. He was smart, kind and the most generous man any of us knew.

He found beauty in everything and was an artist at an early age. Some cannot imagine making time for anything else while in medical school and then while working full time with young children at home. However, Dad managed to paint his entire life, leaving behind hundreds of remarkable pieces of art that now grace the walls of his 5 children’s homes. Dad was a true artist, in and out of the operating room.

He also loved collecting antiques and has a museum-worthy collection of magnificent pieces that he accumulated throughout his travels. Though he loved antiques and jewels, his true treasure was his family. Pop Pop was especially fond of his 9 grandchildren and cherished being surrounded by them daily. He made certain they went home every night with a fistful of M&Ms, a bag of quarters and about 1,000 kisses. He was by far the best husband, dad and Pop Pop anyone could imagine.

Our father was a servant to the Catholic church and committed himself to supporting and befriending clergy. He was the first person to offer help, whether medically or personally, in any situation. He spent time in Guatemala performing Cleft Lip and Palate surgery for those in need. Dad loved working with children. He had a calmness that would keep the most rambunctious child still. He was an amazing doctor because he not only loved what he did, but he had a sincere interest in helping others.

Dad traveled the world several times over and had wonderful stories to tell; from mixing with royalty to climbing pyramids and even meeting the Pope! His fantastic tales of adventure seemed impossible to be true, but they always were. He had a particular passion for Egypt. He went many times with family, friends and even friends of friends. He was happy to take anyone and enjoyed sharing his tremendous love and great knowledge of Egypt with them. He even funded scholarships for the study of Egyptology in Cairo.

Some of us find one passion in life and try our best to make time for it. Our dad had endless interests and passions (including pinochle!) and managed to make time for them all. He didn’t talk about doing things, he did them…and often to a magnified degree. If you asked him for cough drops, he’d come back with 100 boxes. If you asked him to put up Christmas lights, he’d do every single tree, the house and even the swingset (and then would keep them up all year round)! He was larger-than-life.

Dad took an interest in not only our lives, but his friends’ and their children’s lives. A true host and amazing party thrower, Dad dedicated himself to maintaining his friendships. He had a checklist of people he’d call on Sundays to keep up to date on their lives. He genuinely cared. He gave the best advice – “always focus on the task at hand”, “marry her, you aren’t getting any younger”, “buy next semester’s books and read them now so you’re not behind” and his daughters’ personal favorite, “you need nice clothes, let’s go shopping”. He always wanted everyone to look their best. Whether real estate, career direction, parenting tips, home design or what we should wear; we honestly do not know how we will carry on without his wise words to guide us.

Throughout our lives, we have often been approached by Dad’s colleagues and patients. It has been humbling to grow up and meet people who are not only connected to our father, but who feel compelled to tell us how exceptional he is and explain the strong impact he has on them. At no point have we ever had to question the almost supernatural presence of Dad.

A friend told us recently that our father displayed a different standard of kindness, generosity and friendship that he had never seen in anyone else. He is right. Dad viewed life as a blank canvas that he could leave his mark on. He brought out the most beautiful parts of people, inside and out. Dad had the gift of making everyone around him feel special, but no one could possibly be more special than he.

Dad, we will miss you. You were truly “excellent”!