Joanne, Paul and Joe - I'm sorry to hear about your dad. I have so many fond memories of him as a kid, hanging out with the Costello's on Oakland Avenue. He was truly a kind man. And was so patient with me whenever I showed up with car trouble! May God grant him eternal peace and may you and your families find comfort surrounded by those who love you. May his memory be forever a blessing.
From our family to yours, wishing you much love,
Margaret Cuccinello

Paul, Maria, and the entire Tavolilla family, we are so sorry for your family's loss. We are also sorry we can't grieve with you in this odd time. Prayers for your father Paul and your whole family.

Keith and Silvana

Joe Tav was one of a kind, and will be missed. I have, like many others who new him, many fond memories. He comes from a generation with ethics and values you don't see that often nowadays.
Always there to lend a hand, and there to help me out when things went above my mechanical ability.
I will miss the conversations we had and the laughs, and the memorable "Joe Tav stories we all experienced, who were close to Joe.
My deepest sympathy to the Tavolilla Family

Paul, Joanne, Joey and your families-
Sending you all my deepest condolences on the loss of your dad.
I have such wonderful memories of him and our families and growing up in Tuckahoe together! Hoping all your wonderful moments and memories get you through this difficult time. May he Rest In Peace 🙏

Mr Tavolilla

Sitting in the back seat of a strange looking loud Italian car, I still remember sliding from right to left to right as Mr Tavolilla shifted his way thru Columbus Ave, Lincoln and then onto Oakland Ave.. It was my first after school playdate with Paul and when I first spent time with Mr. Tavolilla.

Paul and I walked from Assumption School to Tavol Auto Service. Being in second grade and seeing the inside of a repair shop was like walking into Shea Stadium for the first time. Lots of cool things. Cars were up in the air and everyone in there seemed to be, yelling at each other. (Later I found out that they just talk very LOUD with a lot of passion.) They had Giant Tow Trucks that we got to play in like a playground. When we got to the house they had the Sunday Dinner but it wasn’t Sunday.

When I got picked up was so excited to tell my family about all the new exciting things we did. They ate PineCones which turned out to be Artichokes. My Parents told me that the Tavolilla’s immigrated from Italy to Tuckahoe just like my Grandparents did. My Mom & Dad told a story about how Mr. Tavolilla would practice shifting & driving with a broomstick and Broommm Broommm sound effects when he first came to Tuckahoe. With my parents Nice Family Blessing a Lifelong Best Friendship was born.

The Tavolilla’s became my second family. I finally had a little brother Joey that we used for “Testing Purposes” and ANOTHER SISTER, Joanne. Mrs. Tavolilla was a living Saint that was either going or returning from Church or cooking for the Family. The Tavolillas also came with many new Aunts & Uncles. Uncle George, Joe’s twin, was my favorite.

Growing up with Paul and the Tavolilla Family was great. So many characters who were involved with so many exciting fun things. TAVOL became our playground. Life was always an ADVENTURE. Out of all of them Joe was the one that taught me the most and was a major influence in my life.

Joe was always happy with that smile and that trademark* squeaky voice. His sense of humor was classic. "Francis where is my envelope???"(spit or fly collection). "Paulie, hold the light. No hold the light the right way." The line of his lifetime was: I can’t Believe I raised such Stupid Kids!!!!


Mr. Tavolilla was a hardworking, self-taught business owner who was a mechanical genius. He was Blessed with the ability to look at something and understand How It Worked. Joe was always learning. He was constantly reading and studying bout new automotive technologies and equipment. He was like the Detective Columbo. He asked allot of questions and kept notes on envelopes in his shirt pocket.
I remember Paul as in school and was telling me about the new Wire Sensor System for Fuel Injection. He came home one weekend excited to tell his dad about what he learned. Joe showed Paul his notes with a diagram. “LOOK, I got it right here. This is a really good f%#@ing thing”.

He had a system for everything (efficient), from key locations of parked cars to necessary items needed to turn the water on & off at the country home. A system for calling the shop after 7:00. A system for cutting Wine with Lemon Soda so it doesn’t aggravate the Gout.

There was even a system for picking cold cuts for your sandwich. You had to smell them first to determine your portion. Eating slowly was a taught to me by Mr. Tav. We would have contests sometimes on who could eat slower. He always won. *squeaky voice trademark*.“Gillie Bab. Come on….Another piece of cheese……It’s good… I just smelled it. “. Savoring each bite that you put in your mouth takes time. I owe this ART to Mr. Tav.

Storytelling was another. As everyone in the FAMILY knows that you Never Hook to the Bumper when you tow. The reason is because the car you are towing could pass you on the Major Deegan. Any story to do with Crazy Uncle John was always hilarious. His voice always got higher *squeaky voice trademark* as the story progressed.

If you wanted to learn about something, all you had to do was to be there after 7:00 & “Hold the drop light” for Mr. Tavolilla. There was TRANSLATION to that *squeaky voice trademark*. “Aye. Hold the light”. In Mr. Tav, it meant Watch What I’m Doing. Things were broken down. Complicated systems were explained in simpler, smaller items. Each had a purpose. Finding out which one was not working was done thru a process of elimination. Tracing electrical circuits is similar but you have a map (schematic) as a guide. Patience is needed as you need to do it one wire at a time. Troubleshooting was taught to me by the best, Mr. Tavolilla. I make a good living doing these basic things daily. Joe let John Reichelt know what he was getting into when he opened his shop up. *squeaky voice trademark*“Sometimes you get paid with Coo Coo Clocks and live Chickens”. He was great at Teaching Others what he proudly learned.


Mr Tav really enjoyed life to the fullest. Trips were not just trips away, they were ADVENTURES. Hunting Weekends, Laconia NH, Montreal, races. He drove the entire United States to Alaska and back. Met and socialized with people in many states. There was a famous Church trip to see the Pope in Italy and they were taking bets on the cursing situation.


He always had a hobby kick that he would research, do some trying and then master by making it his own.
EXAMPLES:
A auction purchase of a lifetime supply of Best Line Soaps started a kick of appliance / furniture buys that were stored in the Country Home.
A Barn was built to hold the overload of items, snowmobiles, motorcycles & vehicles.
Alfa Romeos, BMWs and others would start from the scrap heap and be turned into finely tuned racing machines.
Home Stereo would be researched with 6th Ave Photo catalogues with Specs. He had one of the first cassette recorders with Dolby*. Maxell tapes were recorded and numbered.
High Fidelity made its way to Car stereos with speakers, tweeters & amps. Stereos were plugged into any home.
The Hunting Club kick was a great run with Joe as President.
Other kicks that I could remember: Rifles, handguns,
Motorcycles 754’s, Gold Wings (3 at one time!),
Trailers & Mobile Homes.
He was even a groupie for a Band in the Catskills called the Mustangs.


There was a saying on one of his campers that Said it Best:
Too Old to Work
Too Young to Die
I’m just Going Bye Bye *squeaky voice trademark

We will miss Joe and his wonderful smile and laugh. We spent many fun days with him sitting around Madeline Williams' table and sharing good food and good fun.

Our condolences to the family.

Our deepest condolences to Joe's family. We were his customers for a long time and he always took good care of our cars. He always had a ready smile and greeting whenever we would see him around Tuckahoe. He and the family will be in our prayers.

Don & Elsa Gammon

Deepest sympathies to you, Rose, and to all the Tavolilla family. No one from Tuckahoe can ever picture Joe without a smile and a kind word, always ready to share a laugh. You are in the thoughts and prayers of all of our family at this sad time.

Deepest condolences to the Tavolilla family. Many memories of walking down to Tavol with my Dad Charlie Volpe to get the car. You are in my thoughts and prayers.