It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our amazing father and grandfather,
Joseph Michael Bierworth, (aka Biff). It was by fate that he died on December 20, 2024, his Mom’s birthday, and was just 10 days shy of his 85 th birthday. Born on December 30th, 1939 in Oneida NY, and raised in the Silver City of Sherrill, NY, Joe attended the Vernon, Verona and Sherrill (VVS) School system. There, he was an active member of student council, class president, prom king candidate, a top scorer on the varsity basketball team, an outstanding punter for his varsity football team and a high heat pitcher on the varsity baseball team. After graduating from VVS in 1958, he went on to attend college at Brockport State University of New York where he received a Bachelor of Science in Education and later obtained a Master of Science in Education. It was at Brockport that he met and married our Mom, Sandra Gizzi. They moved to Clinton, NY (a true Hallmark Christmas Village) and raised five children. Our Dad was a kind, gentle soul whose family was the center of his world. He worked tirelessly to make sure we had all that we needed. He influenced a generation of children, having taught fifth grade, and coached various sports teams at Clinton Central School District for over three decades. Joe founded Clinton’s first tennis program and was also the Director of the Clinton Playground during the summer months when school was not in session. At the playground, he perfected his ping pong and knock hockey skills. He was unbeatable! In 1993, as a result of his dedication to both teaching and coaching, he was inducted into the Town of Kirkland Hall of Fame. After retiring in 1994, Joe spent winters with family in Ormond Beach, Florida and enjoyed summers on Bradley Brook Lake in Eaton, NY. During his summer visits to New York he made a special point of visiting family members living in Rochester, Binghamton and Oneida. Dad was a loyal animal lover. He took special pride in caring for his family’s dogs and cats. He loved taking nature walks and long baths in Bradley Brook. He especially enjoyed watching his children and grandchildren play sports, taking educational vacations to battlefields and visiting historic areas throughout New York State and around the U.S. He also loved going to his favorite libraries which fed his voracious appetite for good books and magazines. He was a faith filled man, who always put family first. Joe loved watching a good rerun of Lawerence Welk and would fall quickly for an HLN, Lifetime movie original. He was a member of the Moose Lodge in Ormond Beach, Florida as well as the Clinton Retired Teachers Association. He was predeceased by his parents. Mary Elizabeth (Lust) Bierworth, Michael Fredrick Bierworth, brother, John Douglas Bierworth and son in law, Matthew DiNicola. Joe leaves behind five children: Mary (Terry) McFadden, Endwell, NY; John (Dawn) Bierworth, Ormond Beach, Florida, Joe (Holly) Bierworth, Port Orange, Florida; Suzie DiNicola, Rochester, NY and Tom (Katie) Bierworth, Endicott, NY. He also leaves behind 8 grandchildren: Johnny Plouffe, Jack McFadden, Jordyn DiNicola, Tony Ruffolo-Jordan, Sammy, Alex, Tommy, and Ryan Bierworth; Brother, Micheal Bierworth; Sister in-law, Nancy Bierworth, along with favorite nieces, Mandy Stockhammer and Lindy Gunther and their families. He will be missed by many friends and other family members. While our Dad taught us well to navigate life’s little undulations, he was famous for coming up with quotes, sayings and mantra’s to live by that uniquely represented who he truly was and who he wanted his children to be. He taught us how to be kind, work hard, and to help those in need (human, k9, or feline). He instilled much of his goodness by giving us many endearing, funny memories and words to live by.
Presented is a tribute some of those shining examples of his insight:
“Ode to Biff”
If the shoe fits, shellack it.
Don’t quit!
Put er in neutral and coast.
Buy a box of 5 cent Hershey’s popsicles and a bushel of apples.
Grow a garden.
Compost.
Walk and bike when you can.
Plant red geraniums.
Buy only green and wood grain station wagons.
Make a wardrobe of hooded, zip up sweatshirts.
Always have a good wooden baseball bat and a broom.
Eat only with Oneida Silverware!
Carry a Webster dictionary, a paper road map and some scratch offs.
Make maple walnut ice cream, egg salad, tomato sandwiches, chocolate milk, lemonade and donuts your food groups.
Find a good diner for breakfast!!!
Shop local.
Buy a 1/2 a cow that was locally raised.
Read the newspaper!!!!
Visit one room school houses, parks, apple orchards, cider mills and pumpkin farms.
Take time for a daily word jumble or challenging math problem.
Feed the birds and squirrels wherever you can.
It’s okay to live on spaghetti and meatballs.
When on the road, camp at KOA campgrounds.
Enjoy a fish fry at Sylvan Beach.
Listen to a good talk show, baseball game or a Willie Nelson song on a transistor radio…..
Always have a bar of Ivory soap and be ready for a dip in Bradley Brook on a cool November morning!
Take care of your maintenance, custodial and kitchen crews because they will most certainly
take care of you when you need it most.
Practice your hook shot and free throws daily!
And finally….
“You don’t know it yet, but you got it made, enjoy it all!”
A celebration of life catholic mass will be held at St. Helena’s Church, 204 Primo Ave, Sherrill,
NY, on Tuesday, July 22 nd at 11:00am.
The Bierworth family has setup a fund through Visions Federal Credit Union to instate a memorial in Joseph’s name. The memorial will reside on Clinton Central School District campus in Clinton, NY. For those wishing to donate, please make check payable to: Joseph M. Bierworth memorial \ CNT for J Bierworth. Send checks to: Visions Federal Credit Union, 24 McKinley Ave. Endicott, NY 13760. You may also transfer funds by phone. Call 1-800-242-2120 and reference CNT for J Bierworth.
“I fought a good fight, I won the race, I kept the faith.” Timothy 4:7
