Obituary of Leo J Hatem

Leo Joseph "Asea" Hatem, 78, of Clifton, died Saturday March 17, 2012 at Mountainside Hospital. Born in Paterson, October 12, 1933, he was the son of the late John and Julia Hatem. Adventurous from a young age, Leo began training as a Jockey at age 16. He rode thoroughbred race horses at major race tracks like Belmont & Monmouth Parks and rode his first winner at Garden State Park. Leo was also a veteran and served proudly as a soldier in the U.S. Army, doing a tour of almost 2 years in Korea. Upon return from Korea, Leo went to New York School of Announcing and Speech on the G.I. Bill and soon after was doing record hops and some stand-up comedy. He caught the acting bug and appeared in numerous community theatre productions, tv shows and independent films throughout the years. A member of AFTRA, one of his most treasured memories was being a cast member on the tour of the musical version of The Drunkard, conducted by Barry Manilow. During the 70's and 80's Leo also worked as a purchasing agent for Athenia Steel in Clifton and joined the New Jersey Association of Realtors in 1991. At the time of his death, Leo was employed by Century 21 Award Agency in Nutley and also worked as a standardized patient for several medical schools including Cornell and UMDNJ. Leo was a man of many accomplishments, but nothing made him prouder than being a father and a grandfather. He is preceded in death by his beloved son Noah John. Surviving, is his wife of 37 years, Gail Hatem; nee Martin, daughters Kathleen (Hatem) Loffio & her husband Vincent of Saylorsburg, PA and Emily (Hatem) Bednarz, her husband Erik & their son Noah Edward of San Antonio, TX, and many nieces, nephews, cousins & friends. Friends and family are welcome to offer their condolences to the family from 2-4 and 7-9 PM Wednesday March 21st and funeral at 10 AM on Thursday March 22nd at Festa Memorial Funeral Home, Union Blvd., Totowa, NJ. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Leo's name to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, 811 W. Evergreen Ave., Suite 204, Chicago, IL, 60642 http://pulmonaryfibrosis.donorpages.com/tribute/khatem/. For more information, go to www.festamemorial.com.