Paul Sapienza, owner of Sapienza Bake Shop in Elmont, dies at 68

Sapienza Bake Shop on Hempstead Turnpike in Elmont was well known for a variety of delicious treats.

For Paul Sapienza, who owned and operated the shop for 47 years, it also was a vital part of the town he lived in and loved. The shop was a place that helped serve the community, create jobs and built an everlasting bond with neighbors.

His son, Andrew Sapienza, who recently took over the bakery, said his father took great pride in what he could do for the people of Elmont.

"It’s one thing to just be selling cookies and pastries, but we’re providing jobs for people in the community," said Andrew Sapienza, 40, of Elmont. "All the people that have worked there for 40 years? They’re all parents and they all have kids and they’re all making money trying to do the best they can. I always looked at it like that."

Paul Sapienza, a longtime Elmont resident who served as president of the Elmont Chamber of Commerce, died Nov. 29 of a brain aneurysm at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, his family said. He was 68.

"He legitimately did not have any hobbies," said daughter, Melissa Waelchli, 42, of Texas. "If he found a free moment, he would just do more work."

That work extended far beyond the flour-filled backrooms of the bakery he sustained or the creamy insides of the treats he served. As a member of the board of the directors at Gateway Youth Outreach Inc., Paul Sapienza was committed to making sure the children of Elmont were taken care of properly.

The organization, for which he also served as bookkeeper, coordinates after-school programs within the Elmont School District. They also offer employment programs for high schoolers, said executive director Pat Boyle.

"Paul had the biggest heart of probably anyone I have ever worked with in Elmont," said Boyle, 62, of the Bronx. "He didn’t know how to say no, and he always tried to help whoever he possibly could. … He saw the difference that he was making. He really was committed to these young people."

Paul Sapienza also served on the board of directors for the Martin De Porres School for Exceptional Children in Elmont.

"He wanted Elmont to be the best place it could be," Waelchli said. "So, he volunteered at the organizations he knew would reach that."

"He wanted to see everyone succeed," added daughter Dawn Costorf, 50, of Massachusetts. "He never wanted to see anyone struggle. He was always one to go out of his way for whoever would call him."

Born Oct. 2, 1952, at Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre, Paul Sapienza spent the beginning of his childhood in Elmont, before moving with his family to Baldwin at age 9. He graduated from Chaminade High School in 1970 and from St. John’s University in 1974 with a degree in accounting.

The art of baking was a family business. As a child, Paul Sapienza worked in his father’s bread shop in Elmont. When his father opened the bakery in 1967, Paul Sapienza continued to help out and finally took it over in 1973.

Paul Sapienza also was heavily involved in baking trade organizations. He served as president of the Nassau-Suffolk Bakers Association, vice president of the New York State Bakers Association, and executive director and treasurer of the Retail Bakers of America, said Rich Reinwald, former owner of Reinwald’s Bakery in Huntington.

"He’s the definition of a friend — extremely loyal and not judgmental," said Reinwald, a past president of all three trade organizations.

Paul Sapienza ran unsuccessfully to represent Nassau County’s third legislative district in 2017. He supported development around Belmont Park, provided it benefited the surrounding area.

Despite his busy schedule, Paul Sapienza always made time for his family. Vacations and other family functions were not to be missed, and he was always a phone call away should an emergency arise, consistently lending a nonjudgmental ear, his children said.

A devout Catholic, Paul Sapienza was a lifelong member of St. Boniface Church in Elmont, where he served as a lector, eucharistic minister and usher, his family said

"He was one heck of a wonderful person," said Roseanne Sapienza, his wife of 45 years. "He never had a bad word to say about anybody, never really blew up or had a bad temper. "

In addition to his wife and children, Paul Sapienza is survived by sisters, Rose Wormsley and Annette Cassata, both of upstate New York; and five grandchildren. A funeral Mass was held Dec. 4 at St. Boniface Church. He was interred at Holy Rood Cemetery in Westbury, his family said.