DEVELOPM ENT NEWS
A Family Aff air
Generations of Gugginos have loved Jesuit –
especially the one who couldn’t attend the school
The Guggino family history with Jesuit
High School began long before any Gugginos
had the opportunity to enroll at the
school.
In the 1920s, Joe Guggino was all set to
come to Jesuit, then known as Sacred Heart
College and still a relatively new school,
having been founded in 1899.
But Joe’s father died, and at age 14 he
was forced to join the workforce to help
his mother and family. As the oldest of six
children, despite his youth he felt it was
his duty. So he started painting houses,
and then began painting for the Seaboard
Airline Railroad. It was the beginning of 40
years there.
The spirit that inspired him to help support
his family at age 14 carried with him
throughout his life and made a tremendous
impact on others – most notably his son.
“He never used a sick day,” said his son,
Jack Guggino ’58. “He would tell us stories
about how blacks and Italians were mistreated
and always at the bottom of the list
at the railroad.
“They called him ‘Joe the wop,’ but his
32 JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • WINTER 2017-18
1956, the school relocated from downtown
to West Tampa – Jack Guggino accepted
a music scholarship to the University of
Tampa. The musical aptitude was another
byproduct of being Joe Guggino’s son.
“He loved music – he played the clarinet
until he was 103, 104 years old,” Jack Guggino
said. “Then one day he said the clarinet
was no good, it was squeaking. I said, ‘Dad, I
think it’s you, not the clarinet.’”
Jack Guggino went to medical school at
the University of Miami, married his wife
Judy in 1965 – they’ll celebrate their 53rd
anniversary in June – and became a pediatric
opthamalogist.
Dr. Jack Guggino, along with his father,
passed down the love for Jesuit. Jack’s two
sons, Steven Guggino ’86, an ER doctor,
and Joe Guggino ’85, an attorney, also
matriculated at Jesuit. So did two nephews,
Ed Garcia ’88 and Anthony Garcia ’89.
Which, of course, elated grandpa. Joe
Guggino witnessed his four grandsons
graduating from Jesuit, events that could be
traced all the way back to the sacrifi ce he
made when he was 14 years old.
“Dad was so proud of his grandsons,”
Jack Guggino said. “He’d always ask them,
‘How are you doing in school?”
Joe Guggino died in 2015, a month shy of
his 105th birthday. He was remembered as a
family handyman who was honest, hardworking,
and treated everyone with kindness
and equality. And for providing opportunity
and education for the next generation.
“Dad was a special person who indeed
lived his life as a Man for Others.”
So, in January, when Jack Guggino came
to Jesuit for a photo with his sons for this
story, they did what came naturally – they
brought a picture of the family patriarch,
and held it for the photo.
“What dad couldn’t do, he helped others
do,” Jack Guggino said. “I think that’s pretty
special.”
personality and goodness turned that into
an endearing term. He stood up for the
weak and oppressed, forbade us from using
the ‘N’ word, and made us stand up for
what was right.”
Joe Guggino would travel from station
to station, painting the train stations, the
furniture, offi cials’ homes, and the like, and
then return to Tampa.
All the while, he never forgot about
Jesuit. When the time came, he made sure
his son could attend.
Jack Guggino ’58 with his sons, Steven Guggino ’86 and Joe Guggino ’85,
holding a photo of family patriarch Joseph Guggino
“My dad was a ‘Man for Others’ – kind,
forgiving,” Jack Guggino said. “He was just
so benevolent.”
A Man for Others who made sure his son
became a Man for Others at Jesuit. During
his high school years, Jack Guggino was
inspired at Jesuit by educators such as Fr.
Eugene Bannin, S.J., Mr. David Knight, S.J.,
and Fr. Charles Lashley, S.J.
“Fr. Lashley guided me, he knew what I
needed to hear,” Guggino said. “He was a
great man.”
After graduating in 1958 – midway
through his high school years, on Feb. 12,