In Memoriam:
Joe Ferrante
1951-2007
On November 9, 2007, tiling contractor Joe Ferrante suffered a massive heart
attack at the This Old House TV show project in Newton, Mass., and died in
the ambulance on the way to the hospital. He was 56.
Joe made magic with stone and ceramic tile on almost every season of
This Old House TV for 20 years. He also contributed regularly to
This Old House Magazine, giving detailed, thoughtful answers to readers' and
editor's questions.
Growing up in the trade—he learned it from his father—Joe relished the
old-fashioned job of mixing "mud" with a hoe and packing it into a firm
mortar bed. "It's the best surface for setting tile, no question," he said.
He also had an artist's eye for how tile should look, carefully planning his
layouts to make sure each piece and every joint landed in just the right
spot. Shortcuts were anathema to him; if the specs called for two coats of
waterproofing membrane, he'd apply three, just to be safe. "I'm a real good
guy for overkill," he once said, "because I hate going back to fix
mistakes." So strong was his pride of workmanship, he simply refused jobs if
he felt any pressure to do less than his best.
That was never a concern when working for Tom Silva, who first hired
Joe 1983. They were a virtually inseparable jobsite pair ever since. "He
had a great attitude," says Tom. "If something had to be changed, it was
always, 'No problem.'" Joe is survived by his wife, Ellen, four children,
and one grandchild. All of us who knew him will miss his ready smile, his
friendly backslaps, his endless trove of stories. It was our great privilege
to have known him.
