West Babylon's Sil Impagliazzo was a founding member of the...

West Babylon's Sil Impagliazzo was a founding member of the West Babylon Parents Sport Association. Credit: Heather Walsh

At age 92, Silvio Impagliazzo worked the concession stand at West Babylon Senior High School’s homecoming football game last fall to volunteer his time before taking a seat to watch the on-field action with one of his sons.

But what stands out for Paul Impagliazzo when he remembers that day with his father isn’t the game they saw but all the families who said hello.

One family stopped by, and both parents and their three children had been part of a CYO sports program Silvio Impagliazzo ran locally for more than five decades.

“He smiled at me when they walked away and said, ‘I get so much more back than I ever gave,’ ” recalled Paul Impagliazzo, 61, of Delray Beach, Florida.

The elder Impagliazzo, who was inducted into the West Babylon Alumni Foundation’s Hall of Fame despite never attending the district’s schools, died April 22, according to his family. He was 93.

The father of six, who previously worked in finance for 45 years, died from complications of coronavirus at Our Lady of Consolation Nursing and Rehabilitation Care Center in West Islip after fighting pneumonia, said his daughter Diane Colletti, of East Islip.

Impagliazzo was “a West Babylon icon” who never stopped organizing youth sports and related fundraising efforts after his own children had grown up, said Ralph Rienzo, the Alumni Foundation’s president.

An undated photo of Silvio Impagliazzo of West Babylon.

An undated photo of Silvio Impagliazzo of West Babylon. Credit: Linda Impagliazzo

“You could always count on Sil,” he added.

In 1975, Impagliazzo was instrumental in founding the West Babylon Parents Sports Association, and it funded more than $120,000 in scholarships for district graduates under his leadership, according to his Hall of Fame profile. He ran the association into his 90s, his family said.

Born in the Bronx to Italian immigrants, Impagliazzo chose service in the U.S. Navy in World War II over an acceptance to Columbia University. As a young man, he excelled at baseball and had a tryout — albeit an unsuccessful one — with the Yankees, said Colletti.

Impagliazzo met Joanie O’Meara at a church social and they married in 1955. They later bought the Bermuda Road home where they raised their children together before she died of a brain aneurysm when their youngest child was in high school, the family said.

One of Impagliazzo’s joys later in life was attending the sports games of his grandchildren, according to relatives. They buried the passionate sports fan — in a Mets jersey and Giants hat — on May 8 at St. Joseph Cemetery in Babylon.

Other survivors include daughter Linda Impagliazzo of Bay Shore, Susan Impagliazzo of Lake Ronkonkoma, Marybeth Impagliazzo of Oakdale; son Peter Impagliazzo of West Islip; and eight grandchildren.

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