Jason Michael Brescia was born on March 29,1972, into an incredibly close-knit family, in the small Italian community of Stafford Springs, Conn. Like most children of the ’70s, Jason spent most of his childhood playing outside with cousins and neighborhood friends. Family dinner on Park Street was a strict routine, and much care and love went into what was put on the table. This love of preparing food and eating together stayed with him for the remainder of his life, and there are many family members and friends who enjoyed Jay’s love of cooking and hosting.
Jason’s parents tended their own vegetables and treasured heirloom tomato seeds (and sacred family recipes) as if they were made of gold. This love of gardening stuck with Jason. He religiously saved seeds, maintained his greenhouse, and weeded his tomatoes after work, even in the hottest weeks of summer.
Growing up, Jason was a part of a loving Italian family. Jason was always surrounded by loved ones: his parents Joe and Gloria, his big sister Michelle, his many cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and close friends. Being a typical Italian son, however, Jason was especially close with his mother. Gloria was the apple of Jason’s eye, and vice versa. When Jason was 19 years old, Gloria was diagnosed with breast cancer. This frightening diagnosis bonded them more closely. They spent time together, or spoke on the phone, every single day until Gloria passed in 2006.
As kids, Jason and Michelle had always had each other, but they also had the draw of other close cousins and friends, and as they grew up their relationship transformed.
When Michelle moved to Boston, Jason was still in high school. He loved to visit Michelle and her then-boyfriend Craig in their North End apartment. Jason attended community college, but wasn’t wild about accounting, and spent a majority of his time fishing local creeks and streams for trout. Michelle and Craig moved to Martha’s Vineyard, and shortly after, Jason followed.
Jason’s connection with the Island was immediate. He loved fishing, his community of friends, and being close to Michelle. Michelle and Craig had begun their own family, and Jason became a proud uncle to Max and Avery.
Jason also loved that he could work outside, and began shingling. He started Old School Shingling with his good friend Mike Sullivan. After a few years of doing the rental shuffle, Jason bought a home in Oak Bluffs.
A few years later, Jason adopted a boxer puppy named Bosco, and for the next 14 years those two were inseparable. Anyone driving past Jason’s truck knew it was him because Bosco’s profile was always in the passenger seat.
When Bosco was still a pup, Jason met his future wife, Corinna. Although it is unclear who she found more charming, him or the puppy, Jason and Corinna felt an immediate connection, and were inseparable from the moment they met.
Corinna grew up in a family who loved the outdoors, and Jason joined in on family camping trips to Maine. One of the first times Jason hung out with the entire Black family was on a 10-day canoeing trip down the Allagash River. Those idyllic days of floating down the river, catching rainbow trout, watching moose eat just feet away, and cooking meals over a fire sealed the deal. Thus began a long tradition of family trips to Maine: camping in the summer, ice-fishing in the winter.
In April 2006 Jason and Corinna welcomed their son, Walker Joseph Brescia, into the world. This was just eight months after losing Gloria, so having a new baby helped ease the pain. Jason and Corinna quickly indoctrinated Walker into the family tradition of loving the outdoors, and brought him on many camping adventures. Jason also loved sharing his passion for music with Walker. From a very early age, Walker could sing to an impressive variety of artists, anything from Steve Earle to AC/DC.
In 2013 Jason and Corinna welcomed a daughter, whom Jason named Rosalee after a beloved bluegrass song. Seven-year-old Walker and a baby daughter to dote on completed their family. Ten very happy years followed. There were too many gatherings, adventures, and special memories to ever be able to truly capture how special those years as a family of four were to Jason and Corinna. It can be said, however, that even though they had no way of knowing their time together would be cut short, they loved their life together.
Parenting while managing jobs and the rest that life has to offer,isn’t always easy. Still, Jason and Corinna never, ever lost sight of how blessed they were to have each other, two beautiful children, close family on both sides, and an incredible network of friends.
We are all absolutely reeling from this loss. It is unclear if it will ever make sense. In the times that it feels most unbearable, we will cling to each other and the thousands of happy moments we enjoyed together, and try to be grateful.
Please join us on Saturday, April 27, to honor Jay’s life at the West Tisbury Agricultural Hall from 4 to 7 pm.
The post Jason Michael Brescia appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.