As you travel throughout New York State, you are experiencing the legacy of Joe Izzo, who died July 9, 2017, of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

A lifelong resident of the state, Joe came to us as a star athlete from Mechanicsville High School. At Princeton, his longtime fascination with civil engineering began, and he then embarked on a career designing and improving the roads and bridges of New York, up to and including his final project, the monumental new Tappan Zee Bridge. Continuing his active work in Princeton engineering, he interviewed candidates and mentored many newly certified female engineers from the school.

Joe was an irrepressibly joyful, giving person. He was everything from rabid sports fan to popular bartender to lay minister who reveled in the opportunity to conduct a wedding. His brave fight with cancer over many years motivated his family, friends, and engineering firm to join the LLS Light the Night Walks to find a cure for blood cancer as “Team Izzo Inspired.”

He is survived by his wife, Helene Welch Izzo; his children, Cailin Peek and Aaron Peek; brother Sam Izzo; and sister Lucille Pallotta. Whether in the ongoing fight against cancer, the success of the engineering school, or the majesty of the great new bridge, we remember him each day and smile.

Undergraduate Class of 1970