Sam’s Pizza founder Sam Spera passes away at 92

Photo courtesy of John Lynch

The Wildwoods have lost an icon, a pillar of the Boardwalk and local business community for well over half a century.

This morning, via social media, Sam’s Pizza Palace announced that its beloved founder, Sam Spera, had passed away at the age of 92.

Immediately, condolences and fond memories began to flood the famous pizzeria’s accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

“Sam moved to American from Villalba, Sicily in 1951,” the announcement noted. “His goal of building a business to support his family resulted in something much bigger than he could have envisioned. At Sam’s Pizza Palace, Sam devoted his life to serving generations of customers, and developed a local reputation of nearly 65 years.

“Sam leaves behind a legacy built on flour and sauce, hard work, and a strong will. To our customers, staff, and friends - we thank you for being part of his life and story. Sam is survived by his 3 children, Rosemary, Tony and Rita; 8 grand children and 11 great-grandchildren.”

It was noted that Sam’s Pizza will be open for business today “because Sam wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.”

An official history of the pizzeria at samswildwood.com recounts Spera’s journey, from his immigration with wife Anna to Trenton, New Jersey and first trip to Wildwood in 1957 to the opening of Sam’s present-day location in 2006.

In between, the recurring themes of hard work and persistence are eclipsed only by Spera’s love of family - the business evolving with Sam, Anna and their children working side-by-side as their clientele and reputation grew.

This afternoon, longtime food and features writer Peter Genovese published a colorful, heartfelt remembrance of Spera for NJ.com. We highly recommend checking it out:

Founder of legendary Jersey Shore pizzeria dies

Community leader John Lynch remembered Spera in a Facebook post this evening, thanking him as an early supporter of his Lunch With Lynch Foundation.

"The Wildwoods lost another icon that helped mold our community into what it is today," Lynch wrote. "Sam Spera was more than a pizza maker, he was a part of a generation that knew the value of family, hard work and community!

"Sam and his family have been supporters of the Lunch With Lynch Foundation since before we had supporters. He has helped us feed a few thousand slices of pizza to students on our island and beyond. He always loved sitting at the door to say hello or goodbye to our kids when they visited Sam's Pizza Palace."

*****

I feel completely unqualified to eulogize Mr. Spera in any way, but I think I can speak for those of us who "knew him" peripherally when I say that his accomplishments speak for themselves; he was clearly loved by the many who surrounded him; and his legacy will endure for many, many years to come.

Those long lines outside of the pizza palace bearing his name at 26th & Boardwalk are a testament to that!

The little moments - watching him interact with family, staff and customers over the years, that time he winked and tousled my 4-year-old son’s hair as we waited to be seated, his friendly presence at the counter in later years - are what I will remember most.

On behalf of Wildwood 365, I would like to offer our warmest condolences to the Speras and the extended Sam’s Pizza Palace family.

We will miss you, Sam!

 

- Al Alven