A Tribute to Joe Rizzo : A Community Leader . Gone too soon .
by Howard Holley
I
was struck speechless when I learned that Joe Rizzo had passed . As he was to many others , I felt he was a friend . That ’ s because it was how he wanted us to feel . And so , I was heartbroken with no words that I could gather to express the loss and emptiness I felt . Then I thought about the loss to the Education Foundation , the School District , the students and the community overall . His impact was immense . My loss then seemed minuscule but no less real .
For those who may not have known Joe , he was born in Flagler County and graduated from Flagler Palm Coast High School in 1994 . He graduated from Mars Hill College in 1998 and returned to Flagler County , where he and a group of friends opened Woody ’ s BBQ . He started his community service at about the same time as he began his restaurant entrepreneur career . To him , those were both intertwined . Joe joined the Board of Directors of the Flagler Education Foundation and later served as its president . In 2017 , he exited his restaurant businesses and became the Executive Director of the Education Foundation . He said to me , “ Howard , this was the best decision I ever made .” We all know that the students he touched in so many ways were the reason he felt so ecstatic about what he was doing .
I first met Joe in 2013 as I was deciding whether I would make a run for a seat on the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners . I was scheduling a number of meetings with elected officials and political influencers to introduce myself . One of them suggested that we meet for lunch at Woody ’ s Bar-B-Q , which Joe co-owned at that time . Joe came over to say hello to my lunch guest , who was an old friend of his . The next thing I knew , he was sitting across from me , wanting to get to know me . He asked why I was running , what my priorities would
be , etc . He was aware that there had never been a Black County Commissioner elected in Flagler County . He warned me that the task would be hard . But he also encouraged me to run . He said , “ it ’ s time things got shaken up around here .” Well , I didn ’ t “ shake things up .” In fact , I lost . But over the next nine years , I knew I had found a friend in Joe Rizzo .
If you met him , you know how all who knew him feel about this loss . If you never met him , you should know that he was also your friend because he committed himself to making Flagler County a better place for everyone regardless of your birthplace , age , gender or race . When last we talked , he wanted me to meet a young Black man interested in running for office to see if I could help him understand how to win . We both laughed when I asked , “ why would you want a guy who lost his only election to give advice on winning !”
On behalf of all my colleagues at EVOLVE Magazine , Flagler Parent Magazine and TouchPoint Innovative Solutions , we pray for God ’ s grace and comfort for his family , his friends and our whole community . We lost a wonderful person , a true community leader , but he left a great legacy …. our cherished memories !
Howard Holley is Co-Founder and CEO of TouchPoint Innovative Solutions and Publisher of EVOLVE Magazine .
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