James Alphonse Palermo passed on Tuesday, August 31 st , 2021, peacefully, at home with his wife, Mary Lou at his side.

Jim was born in Brooklyn NY, on January 12, 1938 to Marge and Al Palermo, moving to Bay Shore Long Island after marrying Mary Lou in 1959, where together they raised a family of 4 boys, Jimmy, Chris, Robert and Michael.

Jim started working at an early age, as a bricklayer apprentice, following in his father's footsteps.  He soon was running work, eventually becoming the lead foreman for Ray Construction.  Jim also went back to school, obtaining an Associate's Degree and graduating with honors, all while raising a family and working as bricklayer in NYC

Jim loved his family, coaching his kids in basketball and baseball.  Somehow, even while working in the city, he never missed a game, even when he had 3 kids playing at three different schools.  He was always thankful for the honor of seeing his family of six grow to 31.

Jim raised his family in his original Bay Shore home for 26 years, with a little remodeling here and there, adding bedrooms as the family grew, a basketball court and a large swimming pool, with slide and diving board. One of Chris's oldest memories is filling the block of the pool walls with mortar in 1969, along with drive-in movies.  We also know he was proud that all his kids, while taking different paths, have all ended up in the construction business, in one form or another. While all successful, "Pop" was still the best.

Jim went from bricklaying to a short stint with Turner Construction in 1982, before moving with a few Turner execs to California to take over Stolte, an LA and Oakland based general contractor.  This move led to Boston, where Jim oversaw the construction of 1 Congress, and then on to South Fla, opening an office for a small Boston based GC and turning it into the premier high rise construction company in South Fla, if not the country.  ICON, Murano Grande and Portofino, Oceans 1, 2, 3, 4, Trump Tower 1,2,3, Beach Club 1,2,3 and Tuscan 1,2,3 are just some of the towers erected by his team.  Jim built an unparalleled reputation with all he interacted with, from the smallest subcontractor to the largest developers.

There will be a service Friday, 9/3, 5:00 to 7:00 pm, at Coral Springs Funeral Home, 1420 N. University Drive, Coral Springs.  Given the current pandemic, we are limiting attendance to family and close friends, while asking only the fully vaccinated attend and that everyone wear a mask.  We appreciate everyone's understanding for respecting this need.

Please share your memories of Jim or leave your condolences to his family with this Online Guestbook.

At the request of Mr. Palermo's family, both Masks and a Vaccination Record are REQUIRED for entrance to these services.