Joseph Ricardo, Jr., 84 of Cream Ridge, passed away Tuesday, November 29, 2022. Born in Rahway, NJ, he attended South River High School, where he excelled in three sports. In his junior year, he enlisted in the US Navy at the height of the Korean War.

Joe was an accomplished ice skater and hockey player and competed in the Olympic Trials in speed skating for the games in Cortina d'Ampezzo during which he won several heats. He served in middle management of Avery-Dennison Corporation, after working his way up from the janitorial ranks serving as a union foreman for the machine operators.

After 20 years with the company, he and two of his colleagues formed their own label company, Cricket Converters, in Cranbury, NJ. After five years of running Cricket, Joe sold his share for seven figures in 1980 and retired for a while. During this period, he perfected his love of cooking, particularly Italian food, collected fine wine, and indulged his love of automobiles He eventually opened another label company, Lexington Label, in Ewing NJ: running it successfully for 8 years before a sale. This company gave him the opportunity to hire many of his friends and family.

Those who knew Joe best saw him shine most brightly with the relationships he formed with his employees over the years. He became a mentor for many of the young men and women he employed, quietly reminding them that they needed to take care of those around them and pursue realistic dreams.

Although he achieved much, he was and remained, a proud working-class man of New Jersey. Son of the late Joseph and Margaret Ricardo, he was predeceased by his wife, Carole Ricardo. Joe is survived by his former wife, Peggy Ricardo and their children, Donna Riccardo and her husband Forrest Pickett, and R. Randall (Randy) Riccardo and his wife Amber, his siblings, Judith Ann Swirchak and James Buchko, as well as many other relatives, neighbors, and friends.

A burial service will be held in St. John's Cemetery, Allentown in the summer of 2023.