Carl Joseph Vitti Sr.

The Vitti family is heartbroken to announce that beloved husband, father, and grandfather Carl Joseph Vitti, Sr. passed away on July 24, 2025 at the age of 90. Carl was the middle child of the late Peter and Flora (nee Napolitano) Vitti. He will be dearly missed by his cherished wife of nearly 64 years, Frances (nee Papale); his children Regina (Richard) Vitti-Lyons, Carl, Peter (Kelly), and John; his grandchildren Anna Vitti, Rosa Vitti, Jeremiah Lyons, Delaney Lyons, and Richie Lyons; his brother Louis P. Vitti; his brother-in-law Henry Papale; and his sister-in-law Mary Anne Papale. He was preceded in death by his sister Carole Mazzenga, brothers-in-law Tony Mazzenga and Victor Papale; and sister-in-law Roberta Papale. He will be fondly remembered by many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Also known as Sonny and Cuz, Carl grew up in the Larimar Avenue area of Pittsburgh and attended Saints Peter and Paul grade school. There he met one of his closest friends Henry Papale who would introduce him to the woman he said he knew he was going to marry from the first time he saw her, Henry's sister Frances. They started their journey together on August 19, 1961, raising a family, supporting each other through school and jobs, traveling around the world, caring for grandkids, and building a remarkable life. Carl was a proud Central Catholic alum who attended every reunion and went to monthly breakfasts with his Central friends for decades. He served in the National Guard for five years and then in the United States Army, receiving a commendation for having one of the top scores in the nation on the Army Aptitude Test. Following in his father's footsteps, Carl took a job at Nabisco after graduating from high school and stayed there for his entire professional career. He worked his way through the ranks as an internal auditor and controller and ended his 43-year career as manufacturing manager. After retirement, Carl took what was supposed to be a temporary census taker job. He loved talking to people and had such an easy way about him that this seemed like the perfect way to fill his time. However, the Census Bureau quickly saw how bright and capable he was and made him a supervisor. In addition to his professional endeavors, Carl was involved in many volunteer organizations. He was the Stanton Heights Baseball Commissioner, the community liaison for Nabisco, and volunteered for the Special Olympics. But he was most passionate about his volunteer work with the Kingsley Association. He grew up playing at the old Kingsley House and stayed involved with them as an adult, eventually serving for years on the Board of the Kingsley Association, for which he was recognized with their Community Service Award. Carl's two greatest loves were his family and sports, and he combined the two whenever he could. He was an incredible athlete and taught his kids and grandkids how to play baseball, basketball, and golf. He coached his kids' baseball teams in Stanton Heights and as commissioner fought for Stanton Heights little league to allow girls to play, one of the first areas to do so. He played mixed doubles tennis with his wife. He played with his sons in softball, baseball, and bocce leagues. He and his oldest son came in first in their golf league. He was his youngest son's best buddy. He recorded his granddaughters' volleyball matches, which he never missed. And he helped his daughter coach his granddaughter in softball, quickly becoming a grandfather figure to her friends. He was a huge fan of all Pittsburgh sports teams, going with his family to games, but his favorite team was the Pirates. He loved telling the story of being there for Mazeroski's walk off homerun in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series. And loved even more bragging about his grandsons being Pirates pierogis. His grandkids will cherish memories of pancakes from McDonalds, planting "matoes", ice cream runs, beach vacations, family videos, getting them off to school, and his constant presence at their events and milestones. His kids are thankful for his support, presence, sarcastic sense of humor, and for being such a fantastic role model. And his wife will miss the quiet routines, the big milestones, and the challenges and the joys that come with six decades of sharing a life together. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, July 29, 2025 from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm and 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the D'Alessandro Funeral Home & Crematory Ltd; 4522 Butler Street Pittsburgh, PA, 15201. Funeral service will be on Wednesday, July 30, 2025 at 11:00 am, at the funeral home.

Carl Joseph Vitti Sr.

July 7, 1935 - July 24, 2025