Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Joe VaSSallo

Joe,

It has been my pleasure to have talked to you on a number of occasions. Each and every time has been a sheer joy and educational experience.

My thoughts and prayers will be with you and your family.

God bless you, Joe. Thank you for all of your outstanding work at Axiom.

Joe,

You are an inspiration to all who have an innate need to dig beyond the surface of things. I feel lucky to have, with the help of the internet, tangentially graced the same little corner of the planet with you.

The following are not my words (and are rather plagiarized), but I find them fitting.


Here's to the crazy ones.
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.

The ones who see things differently.

They're not fond of rules
And they have no respect for the status quo.

You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them,
disbelieve them, glorify or vilify them.

About the only thing that you can't do is ignore them.

Because they change things.
They invent. They imagine. They heal.
They explore. They create. They inspire.

This is very sad to hear and you are definitely in my families thoughts.

I've spoken to you on the phone, through email and even had the privilege of meeting you at the picnic. You are a great man.

Like others have said, you will be leaving an impact on our world...through more ways than just your art.

May your remaing time be spent well with good friends and family.

Wishing you and yours nothing but the best.

Random thoughts.

How disappointing to know that, at a time like this, no matter what one tries to say, it will fall far short of lending comfort, or succoring a wounded heart. The impotence of the effort is mind boggling.

What a difficult time it must be for all at Axiom these days. My thoughts and heartfelt sorrow are with each and every one of you.

How wonderful it must be to live and work among dearly loved friends.

How wonderful it must be to spend your working hours on something that not only does no harm, but brings joy to those who own it.

I am not allowed to drink due to medication which affects my liver. If I drink, my liver falls out through my navel, or something. But, I swear I'm heading for the fridge and one of the bottles of beer I keep on hand for guests. I'm gonna raise a glass to Joe VaSSallo; to a life well lived. Well done, Joe!

That is just terrible to hear, my thoughts go out to Joe and his family. I can't really add much, other than a big thank you to him for having a hand in creating something that has brought so much joy to others.

Joe, I am very sorry to hear about this news. I've only been able to visit with you a few times over the phone, and I thank you for your time. I've always thought very highly of your artistic work, you are one of a kind, that is for sure.

I visit often with many of the other Axiom owners over the phone, and I can tell you everyone holds you in the highest regards and respect. I only wish I had more opportunities to get up north and meet you in person.

Be strong, have faith, and God Bless you my friend. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Randy

I have only talked to Joe once or twice so most people would say that he is pretty much a stranger to me. The thing about it is, I feel like he is a friend, a good friend at that!

I like to think of myself as a tough guy but I will admit that I am in tears as I type this. Joe, you must be something special to have such an effect on me!

All my best to you and your family. Live life to its fullest! You have all the respect in the world from me.

Having known Joe all my life, I thought I would post some of my memories.

Joe is the only boy of 8 siblings. Yep, that's right - he has 7 sisters!! Over the years, no matter which sisters may be fighting or on the "outs", everyone still remains on good terms with Joe. He always seems to be the binding neutral force within the family. Looking back, I've never seen him angry. Always a smile. Always happy to see you.

Joe is the "fun" uncle. With such a zest for life, going to his house is always a treat. He does nothing half way. It is full-boar, all or nothing, take no prisoners. And man, he loves his toys. Back in the seventies, he had the loudest stereo I ever heard. I remember being 7 or 8 and the thing bringing me to my knee's and making my eyes water. I was hooked. Come to think of it, he still has the loudest stereo......

When CB's were popular, he threw up something like a 100ft tower for the antenna. Back when they made real 4x4 pick-ups and jeeps, he took his and jacked it up 5 ft in the air, and threw on the biggest mud tires that were available.

He has had street bikes, and his son's have had numerous off road bikes. He even hand welded an off road sand/mud buggy from scratch with a roll cage and 6 forward gears. Not to mention the boat and all the cars.

Whenever something new electronically comes out, he's the first one to buy it. Top loading Beta & VHS machines, Laserdiscs, CD players, DVD players, the Commodore 64, the very first Sony walkman, video projectors, and on and on. There is always something new. Shoot, even just last month when I was up, we were playing with some prototype electronics that I'm not allowed to talk about.

Then there is the air brushing and the art school. And something you may not know about is his VaSSallo Girl skin care products.

Being around him is exciting. He has this "can do" attitude about everything in his life. Never any self doubt. He grabs each day by the horns and has fun with it. We all love him dearly.

Wow, I find myself unable to articulate my feelings at this news other than to wish you the best and hold out hope for you. For sure, you will be in my prayers. You are the best. You were the single biggest impact on my original decison to buy Axioms and for that I will aways be grateful to you my friend.