Joseph C. Cermak
Joseph C. Cermak, age 96, beloved husband for 69 years of Sally Ann (nee Stucker); loving father of Dr. James DDS (wife Pamela), Dr. John DDS (deceased) (wife Pamela), Kathleen Bitto (husband Stephen), Thomas (wife Allyson) and Suzanne Valentine (husband Brian); devoted grandfather of Joseph, John (fiancé Darby Stipe), Timothy, Matthew (wife Kayla), Mark, Megan Scarff (husband Nelson), Michelle, Stephen (wife Kawai), Charles (wife Kayla), and Anne Bitto, Stephanie Lund (husband Ryan), Emily, Griffin, Colin, Abigail and Vincent Valentine; and great-grandfather of nine; cherished son of the late Augustin and Stefania (nee Galko) Cermak; dearest brother of the late Julius (wife Bernadette); dear uncle and great-uncle of many.
Joe was a U.S. Army Korean Conflict veteran.
The term gentleman has evolved in common usage to be a polite way to refer to any man. Joseph “Joe” Cermak was more than this. He was, in the eyes of all who knew him, a consummate gentleman in the truest sense of the term.
He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on Feb. 8, 1930, amid the Great Depression. The son of immigrants from present day Slovakia, Joe was every bit the American boy growing up with his brother Julius “JC” in the Buckeye neighborhood.
At East Tech, Joe showed an affinity for math and engineering and after graduating in 1948, he studied Electrical Engineering at Fenn College (now Cleveland State University).
Entering the U.S. Army in 1951 during the Korean Conflict, Joe was selected to teach radar operation based on aptitude testing and was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. It was there that Joe met many of his lifelong friends like Jack White, who would become Father Jack White, George Cassudakis, Ken Beard and Ralph Boschert.
Joe went on to work as a systems engineer for Bailey Controls in Wickliffe, Ohio. Over the years, he contributed his expertise to designing control systems for paper plants, nuclear power plants and large ships, including oil tanker controls and navy submarine reconnaissance vessels. His job took him across the United States and the world.
To his colleagues, Joe was known as a welcoming person who helped young engineers feel at home when arriving at Bailey. His sense of humor made the stress of work more bearable.
He was co-founder of the fictional company called “Miracle Products” with the memorable tagline “If it works, It’s a miracle”.
There was one rule when going out for lunch: The only subject forbidden was discussion about work.
His success in professional life never came at the expense of his family. For Joe, this was the work of his life. He and Sally were married in 1956 and started their family in 1959. By 1971, he and Sally welcomed their fifth child.
Joe was a fun dad who treated his children with kindness and love, raising them to be Christians by faith and actions. He and Sally arranged yearly family vacations to the Muskoka Lake region in Canada, Michigan, Wisconsin, Cape Cod and a cross-country train trip with four kids to California. He taught his kids to love nature by visiting national parks and any hiking trail he could find. He taught them how to fish for “denizens of the deep” (bluegills, usually). Of course, his line was rarely in the water as he was busy baiting hooks, taking fish off hooks and untangling snags.
He made a point of stopping at any historical marker because of his intense interest in history; it seemed Joe could sense the presence of a Revolutionary or Civil War fort from hundreds of miles away.
Joe was a natural when it came to being a grandparent. He and Sally were hands on from the first grandchild through the sixteenth. They introduced their “littles” to the joys of hiking, fishing, picnicking, travel, museums and nature centers.
Using a length of string and a plastic cup to mimic the sound of a chicken, Joe had the grandkids frantically searching the yard for chickens. He used a book with recorded bird calls to summon the owls living in an old dead tree (dubbed the ‘high rise’).
Joe, Sally and the “littles'” enjoyed many, many adventures. His granddaughter Annie was moved to write a short book (to celebrate his 90th birthday) called “If You Give a Grandpa a Little” in the style of “If You Give a Moose a Muffin.” The story recounts the adventures, fun and lessons learned from a grandpa that gave unselfishly of his time and love.
The stories of Joe as a husband, father, grandfather, colleague and friend are legion. Joe was a gentleman and a gentle man. Kind to all, insisting that there is good in everyone and always challenging others to find the good instead of condemning.
Dan Foglelberg wrote a song about his father in 1981 called “The Leader of the Band.” In addition to being a tribute to his father, the song was about the importance of the relationship between fathers and sons and fathers and daughters. Even more importantly, it is about letting people know how much they are loved while there is still time. Joe passed away on Sunday May 10, 2026, knowing he was deeply loved by his entire family and all his friends—nothing was left unsaid.
There is a phrase from the song that expresses the essence of Joe: “His gentle means of sculpting souls took me years to understand.” Many would say Joe was an artist and his true medium was family. His legacy of love lives on in the people whose lives he touched. Rest in peace, Joe.
In lieu of flowers contributions may be made in memory of Joe to City Music Cleveland, www.citymusiccleveland.org/donate.
Services were held by DeJohn Funeral Home.
