by Joseph H. RADDER
You know Joel Giambra, the County Executive, now we want you to meet Joel Giambra,
family man and survivor of crises.
His fondest childhood memories are of growing up in the Lakeview Housing Project. I
didnt realize until I was about eleven or twelve that not everybody had concrete
floors, he said. Joels experience there would serve him well in later years.
I grew up with Native Americans, African-Americans, Spanish-Americans and several
other ethnic groups. It was an environment where everybody was poor but we didnt
know it.
The child of a single parent, Joel Giambra was raised by his mother and grandmother. He
recalls meeting his father for the first time when he was thirteen years old. Yet, the
closeness of his family, cousins, uncles, aunts and his beloved Nana filled
the fatherly void in his life.
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Joel Giambra - 1958. | Joel - 1959. |
Eventually, Joels mother would re-marry. Salvatore Panaro was not my natural
father but he was my real father. I called him Dad, Joel said. Clearly
this was a loving relationship.
The Panaros had a daughter, Angela, giving Joel a half-sister. She is now age 24 and lives
in New York City.
Like most Italian-American families, the Giambra-Panaros were faithful Catholics. Joel
attended Holy Angels grammar school, Grover Cleveland High School and Erie Community
College. He is perhaps more religious today than ever before. Soon after being diagnosed
with throat cancer he and his wife, Michelle, embraced a new approach to Christianity.
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Joel - 1967. |
Speaking of his illness he says It was unbelievable. Two days after undergoing
twelve hours of surgery, Im on the phone with Bruce (Fisher) and Carl (Calabrese)
and were putting an administration together. We asked if the fact that his
diagnosis came just two days after his election as County Executive had affected his
approach to the job. It made me the most humble politician who ever walked the face
of the earth he answered.
All my life, I have been able to take stumbling blocks and make them building
blocks, he said, reminding us of the philosophy When life deals you lemons,
make lemonade.
On the other hand, Joel Giambras life has had its pleasant side as well. In 1982 he
married Michelle Lettieri. We have four beautiful children, he beamed,
Gabriella, 14, Nicholas, 13, Dominic, 11 and Joel, 4. Noting that he will have three
kids in college at the same time he said That means Ill never be able to
retire.
Back row: Nicholas (13), Joel, Michelle,
Dominic (11). |
When he was about Nicholas age he pumped gas at a station on Porter Avenue. Later he
would have a job in the City Parks Department.
He remembers that Mayor Frank Sedita was the public servant who was the biggest influence
in his life, encouraging him to enter the world of politics. As a result he was one of the
youngest men ever to serve on the City of Buffalo Common Council. Later he became City
Comptroller and then was elected overwhelmingly as County Executive.
Babe Panaro (Joels step father), Shirley Panaro (Joels mom) and Joel. |
One of his passions is Erie Community College, not only because he is an alumnus, but
because it is a very important piece of this community. Speaking of his ideas
to consolidate the ECC campuses downtown, he said It will have to happen. Were
prepared to address the (oppositions) issues. He sees this happening within
the next five years. We hope that by the middle of the summer of 2003 we will have a
document that tells us whether or not it's feasible economically. When he said
Im serious about this happening it was typical of his strong positive
attitudes on issues which will improve this community.
Its also refreshing to hear him express his opinions on political cronyism. We
never knew the party affiliation of 70% of the people we hired (to work in County
government) and none of them ever bought a ticket (to a fund-raiser).
A walk through the Rath County Office Building to meet some of these people proves that
Joel Giambra has high quality standards when it comes to human resources. Honest,
industrious, committed, vibrant, these are the words that come to mind when one tries to
describe the qualities of these people. And its obvious that they are simply
reflecting the character of the County Executive.
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Joel and Michelle - 1980. | Michelle and Joel on their wedding day - November 14, 1982. |
Perhaps the best-known Giambra philosophy is his belief in regionalism. The idea that
Buffalo could jump overnight from 54th to 11th largest city in the country excites a lot
of people. And many believe that the savings to taxpayers resulting from elimination of
duplication would be significant. I believe it will happen before the end of my next
term he said with conviction. We need to change the state laws to allow city
and county governments to merge. Giambra believes that will happen in the next
session of the State Legislature. Im convinced, he says, that the
public is way ahead of the politicians in this community. In other words, the people want
change. As soon as elected officials catch up, the better it will be for all of us.
On the issue of casino gambling, Joel is ambivalent. He explains his position this way:
Ive never been a huge proponent. However, being a realist, the moral issues
are something we need to pay attention to, because casino gambling is already here. I
believe that in a controlled environment it could be beneficial but its not the
panacea that has been suggested.
In addition to a very busy life running the county government, Joel Giambra finds time to
serve his fellow man in non-political ways. For example, his experience with throat cancer
qualifies him eminently to address youth on the issue of smoking.
And he still finds time for his favorite sport, golf. He believes strongly that golf is
the most character-building of all sports. It teaches honesty, he says,
as no other sport can.
It should not come as a surprise that the symbol of Joel Giambras administration is
a lighthouse. Miniature lighthouses and pictures of them are all over his office. They
symbolize the beacon of hope Joel Giambra offers to all who believe in what he
is trying
to do.
Joseph H. Radder is a freelance writer.