Joseph A. Maressa Sr., 89, N.J. state senator, health-care advocate

Joseph A. Maressa Sr., 89, of Atco, a fixture in South Jersey Democratic politics who, as a state senator in the 1970s, sponsored legislation creating South Jersey's first medical school, died of respiratory failure Tuesday, Oct. 30, at Virtua West Jersey Hospital in Berlin.

A lifelong resident of Camden County, Mr. Maressa earned a law degree in 1952 in the hope of becoming an FBI agent. That dream did not materialize, setting him on an unanticipated road that led to decades of private legal practice, public service, health-care advocacy, and the universe of South Jersey politics.

He played a pivotal role in growing the party, particularly in Camden County, said former Gov. Jim Florio, whom Mr. Maressa took under his wing 40 years ago. The county changed from red to blue - a transformation Florio attributes in large part to Mr. Maressa's dogged efforts.

Those efforts continued until nearly the end. In June, he was still going to his Berlin law office every day, even in the face of failing health. He had an "incomparable work ethic," said his nephew, Bill Wilhelm, who once was his legislative aide.

Wilhelm described his uncle as a power broker who spent much of his time working for the party, "encouraging one candidate or another, or developing potential opportunities."

When Wilhelm's children complained they were too tired to do something, Wilhelm would remind them, "I bet your Uncle Joe is at his desk."

Mr. Maressa was the major force behind the creation of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Osteopathic Medicine, and he helped drive the expansion of the Kennedy Health System. For the last 35 years, he was a member of the Kennedy University Hospitals board of trustees, which he chaired from 1995 to 2000. He served for more than 25 years on the Kennedy Health System board of directors, which he headed from 1990 to 1994.

Despite a full plate of professional and charitable commitments, Mr. Maressa "donated countless hours of his time attending to the hospital's business, rarely missing a board or committee meeting, always prepared and generous with his advice," said Edward Sullivan, Kennedy Health System's senior vice president and general counsel, as well as a longtime friend.

"Joe came from humble beginnings but was blessed with a fierce desire to succeed, knowing education was the key," Sullivan said. He "was able to give back to his community a double benefit: improved access to health care and an opportunity for a medical education locally."

That made him a magnet for awards - from the American Osteopathic Healthcare Association's Outstanding Trustee of the Year for 2000 to the New Jersey Hospital Association's 2009 Healthcare System Trustee Award and the Kennedy Health System's 2010 Beacon Award.

One of eight children of Sicilian-born parents, Mr. Maressa graduated from Camden High School and, in 1942, joined the Navy. Dispatched to the Pacific theater, he spent World War II as a deep-sea mine-disposal diver. He left the Navy with the rank of lieutenant junior grade in 1945, after which he enrolled at Temple University. He received his degree in criminal justice in 1947.

A post with the FBI was his goal, his nephew said. But no such job availed itself, and so, with a wife and baby to support, he signed up with the New Jersey State Police. For three years, he was a trooper, badge number 888. At night, he went to the Rutgers University School of Law, earning a degree in 1952.

Although he later formed multiple law partnerships, Mr. Maressa had a solo practice in Berlin from 1953 to 1979, specializing in government municipality work. He was solicitor for dozens of townships and school districts during that time.

In 1972, he was elected to the New Jersey State Senate - the first of three consecutive victories - representing the Fourth District. He rose to majority whip and chairman of the powerful Judiciary Committee. What he considered his signature legislation was Senate Bill 1540, establishing the UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine.

Deeply personal reasons drove him to sponsor the bill, his nephew said. Mr. Maressa's wife, Josephine Tomassone, had died of cancer in 1976 at age 49. "He felt South Jersey had been denied the opportunity to have a medical school," Wilhelm said. He "became almost obsessed" with filling that vacuum.

In 1980, his name surfaced in connection with the wide-ranging FBI Abscam investigation, which targeted politicians in Philadelphia and New Jersey. Mr. Maressa took $10,000 from FBI agents purporting to represent Arab sheikhs seeking a casino license in Atlantic City. In rejecting allegations that the money was a bribe - he adamantly said it was a legal fee - Mr. Maressa memorably reasoned that he was being patriotic by taking OPEC money and putting it back into American hands.

The Abscam investigation did not produce any criminal charges against him.

As a lawyer, Mr. Maressa did the paperwork, without fee, to incorporate more than 50 nonprofits, from Berlin's first-aid squad to the Camden County Hero Scholarship Fund. Harking back to his days as a state trooper, he provided the latter with free space in his office and clerical help for more than 30 years.

"He was very good to a lot of people," Florio said. "He gave his legal services to those who didn't have the resources to pay."

Mr. Maressa was a devout Catholic and a devoted family man who hewed close to his Italian roots, his nephew said. "When we attended a family wedding in Sicily a number of years ago, he was able to visit, for the first time, the birthplace of his parents," Wilhelm said. "All the residents in the village came out to greet him - 'the Senator' from America."

In addition to his nephew, Mr. Maressa is survived by sons Anthony J., Joseph Jr., and Julian; daughter Jo Lynne; five grandchildren; and his companion, Muriel Mansmann.

Visitation will be from 3 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4, at Christ the Redeemer Parish, Assumption Church, 318 Carl Hasselhahn Dr., Atco, and from from 9 a.m. to noon Monday, Nov. 5, followed by a Funeral Mass at 12:30 p.m. Interment will be in Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Berlin.

Memorial donations may be made to the Kennedy Cancer Center for Hope and Healing, Kennedy Center at Voorhees, Development Department, 1099 White Horse Rd., Voorhees, N.J. 08043, or the Senator Joseph A. Maressa Endowed Scholarship at UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine, One Medical Center Dr., Suite 305, Stratford, N.J 08084.