Phil Foglia at a wedding. Photo Photo courtesy of the Foglia family
‘He was a champion of Italian
Americans’: COVID-19 claims
Bronx legend, Phil Foglia
He was a man of deep faith: Belmont pastor Monsignor Ruvo dies at 93
BRONX TIMES R BTR EPORTER,MAY 1-7, 2020 3
BY JASON COHEN
Phil Foglia prosecuted
mobsters, drug dealers and
corrupt politicians and won
record-setting civil settlements.
He was best friends with
actor Chazz Palminteri, loved
his family and the law. Sadly,
the lifelong Bronx resident
passed away April 22 from
COVID-19. He was 69 years
old.
“Other than my dad, Phil
was the greatest man I’ve ever
met,” a heartbroken Palminteri
said to the Bronx Times.
“He was a champion of Italian
Americans.”
Palminteri said they grew
up together in Belmont on Arthur
Avenue. The duo went to
Yankee, Knicks and Giants
games and unlike most guys
whose heroes were Mickey
Mantle or Rocky Marciano,
Foglia’s hero was President
George Washington.
“He was a student of history,”
Palminteri said. “He
was such a patriot.”
Foglia, a Pelham Gardens
resident, impacted many people
over the years. The son of a
detective, he found his path in
the courtroom.
Foglia was an assistant
district attorney in the Bronx
working in appeals and rackets,
where he ultimately was
elevated to deputy chief of economic
crimes and the public
corruption unit. He was an Assistant
United States Attorney
under Rudolph Giuliani assigned
to the Organized Crime
and Public Corruption Strike
Force for over four years. In
1988, he was appointed Executive
Assistant District Attorney
for Investigations in
Queens County.
He was a partner at Culleton,
Marinaccio and Foglia,
a White Plains law fi rm, for 17
years and was special counsel
for the City of Yonkers for a
decade. He then served as special
deputy inspector general
and chief on investigations
for the State of New York until
last summer.
In 1981 he met attorney
Michael Marinaccio at the
DA’s offi ce. The two remained
friends for nearly 40 years.
Their families went on yearly
vacations to places like Virginia
Beach, Hershey Park
and the Jersey Shore.
“It’s hard for me to separate
our personal relationship
from our professional one,” he
said.
They worked together
briefl y at the DA’s offi ce and
in White Plains for several
years. In fact, they played on
the district attorney softball
team. Marinaccio said that he
was one of a kind and will be
missed.
“He was a very good investigator,”
Marinaccio said. “He
was somebody that you were
willing to listen to. He was a
leader that people were willing
to follow.”
According to Marinaccio,
Foglia got sick March 22 and
spent 28 days on a ventilator
in the hospital. They thought
he was doing better recently,
but he never recovered.
Foglia was particularly
proud of his Italian-American
identity. He was the chief legal
counsel for the Italian American
Defense and Higher Education
Fund and a founding
board member of the Italian
American Museum.
Foglia was married for
over three decades to Jacqueline
and has two sons, Philip,
Jr. and Louis. Louis spoke
highly about his father.
“He was an exceptional father
and loving husband for
44 years,” Louis said. “His
demanding career never left
us wanting for attention. He
was a little league coach for
the better part of two decades.
We spent countless hours together
in movie theaters and
at Yankee Stadium.”
BY JASON COHEN
For nearly 25 years, Monsignor
John Ruvo was the
pastor of Our Lady of Mount
Carmel in Belmont. On April
26, he passed away at the age
of 93 from the coronavirus.
Ruvo, born in Italy and
raised in Belmont, was the
eighth and longest serving
pastor at Mount Carmel at
627 East 187th St. He had recently
celebrated his 65th anniversary
in the priesthood
and will be sorely missed by
the entire community.
Lifelong Belmont resident
Elizabeth Mannini, who is
the secretary at the church,
said the father was a pleasure
to be around. He was
still working up until he got
sick a few weeks ago.
“He was a man of deep
faith,” she said. “He was always
ready to serve.”
According to Mannini,
the pastor went to P.S. 45 at
2502 Lorillard Pl. and his
fi rst job was working a pushcart
on the streets.
Celeste Calabro, who lives
up the block from the church
knew the pastor her entire
life. Her late father, Salvatore
Calabro, became friends
with Ruvo when they were
11 years old. She said that
Mount Carmel was her second
home and Ruvo was like
an “uncle.”
“We were always in the
church,” she said. “That was
our social group. No matter
where he went people loved
him. He was a go-getter.”
She recalled how the monsignor
used to come to their
house on New Year’s Day and
that he was a Yankees fan.
Mannini stressed that things
have never been the same
since he left the parish.
Mannini tried to call him
once a month and get together.
She will always remember
him fondly.
“He’s the last of the good
priests,” she said. “He was
very devoted. I’m going to
miss him. He’s a special
man.”
Lifelong Belmont resident
Frank Franz knew Ruvo for
40 years. In fact, his grandfather
helped build the church.
Franz was an altar boy
as a child and felt at home at
Mount Carmel. He and Ruvo
got dinner many times and
in the summer would run the
Ferragosto festival together.
“He was an old fashioned
parish priest; they’re just not
like that anymore”, Franz explained.
He told the Bronx Times,
Ruvo was available any time
of the day and had a good
sense of humor.
“The neighborhood loved
him,” Franz stressed. “He
made church more enjoyable
for everyone. Monsignor
Ruvo was a great guy.
As a priest he truly honored
you, not by his great lectures,
but by example. He
led the life and never complained
about it.”
Msgr. John Ruvo who was the pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in
Belmont for 24 years, died April 26 from COVID-19
Photo courtesy of Our Lady of Mount Carmel