Leonard "Leo" Garzarelli

Leonard "Leo" Garzarelli, 98, of Rillton, passed away peacefully Wednesday, May 12, 2021, in Forbes Regional Hospital with his family by his side. He was born Dec. 11, 1922, in Herminie, a son of the late David and Concelia (Verna) Garzarelli Sr. In addition to his parents, Leo was preceded in death by his wife, Rose (Flanders) Garzarelli; daughter, Donna M. Garzarelli; two brothers, Philip and David Garzarelli; and sister, Catherine Corsi. Leo was proud to be an Army veteran, having served during World War II. Prior to his retirement, he had worked for Westinghouse in East Pittsburgh as an automations store room attendant for 43 years. He was the last charter member of Norwin Elks Lodge No. 2313. He was also a member of Irwin LOOM Lodge No. 236, Irwin American Legion Post 359, Italian Miners Society in Hahntown, Life member of the Rillton VFW Post 8518 and commander for 20 years. He organized the VFW in 1947 along with his father and Dave Bazzo. He was All State Commander three times and was VFW District 27 Westmoreland County chaplin for eight years. Leo was a member of St. Edward Church in Herminie. He enjoyed dancing and loved spending time with his family. Leo is survived by his daughter, Rosalyn (Robert) Garman, of Murrysville; his son, Len (Joan) Garzarelli, of Irwin; four special grandchildren, Kimberly (Raymond) Taylor, Robin Poland, Angela Joy (Aaron Tamasy) Garzarelli and Billie Joy (John) Budner; four special great-grandchildren, Dominique, Connor, Alaina Joy and Olivia Joy; sister-in-law, Nancy Garzarelli, of Irwin; and numerous nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews. He will be dearly missed by his family and many, many friends he made over the years. Friends will be received from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday at the JOSEPH W. NICKELS FUNERAL HOME INC., 404 Sewickley Ave., Herminie, PA 15637, 724-446-7251. A private funeral liturgy will be held at 11 a.m. Monday in the funeral home. Entombment with full military honors will follow in Westmoreland County Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Autism Speaks, 1060 State Road, Second Floor, Princeton, NJ 08540, help@autismspeaks.org in memory of Leo. Please be prepared to adhere to all the current CDC Guidelines, including face masks and social distancing in the funeral home. Funeral home occupancy will be limited.