Peter Finley Secchia (April 15, 1937 – October 21, 2020) was an American businessman and Republican political activist, who also served as the

United States Ambassador to Italy Since 1840, the United States has had diplomacy, diplomatic representation in the Italian Republic and its predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946), Kingdom of Italy, with a break in relations from 1941 to 1944 while Italy and the U ...

and

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

from 1989 to 1993.

Education and early life

Secchia was born in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from por ...

. He grew up in nearby

Tenafly Tenafly () is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the borough had a population of 15,409,Tenafly High School Tenafly High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school in Tenafly in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Tenafly Public Schools. S ...

and then went on to attend

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

. He left university because he could not afford tuition and joined the Marines. He eventually earned a degree in economics in 1963.

Career

Secchia served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

from 1956 to 1959 and graduated from

in 1963 with a degree in economics. Secchia was a fund-raiser in the Republican Party in Michigan. He started as chairman of the

Kent County, Michigan Kent County is located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the county had a population of 657,974, making it the fourth most populous county in Michigan, and the largest outside of the Detroit area. Its county seat is Grand ...

Republican Committee and later became the chairman of the 5th Congressional District of Michigan committee. He was elected to be Michigan's Republican National Committeeman in 1980, 1984, and 1988. Secchia was a vice chairman of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

and headed its Midwest Region. He was host chairman of the 1985 RNC Midwest Leadership Conference in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

. He was on the national advisory committee of the 1988

George Bush George Bush most commonly refers to: * George H. W. Bush (1924–2018), 41st president of the United States and father of the 43rd president * George W. Bush (born 1946), 43rd president of the United States and son of the 41st president Georg ...

for President Committee. Secchia founded the Lake Michigan Conference, and was a national co-chair of the

Dole Dole may refer to: Places * Dole, Ceredigion, Wales * Dole, Idrija, Slovenia * Dole, Jura, France ** Arrondissement of Dole * Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska * Dole, Ljubušk ...

for President Campaign. From 1989 to 1993 Secchia was the United States' ambassador to Italy. His nomination was controversial as he was one of several made by Bush of long-time financial backers and financial supporters, including

Walter Curley Walter Joseph Patrick Curley Jr. (September 17, 1922 – June 2, 2016) was the 57th United States Ambassador to France from 1989 to 1993, and the United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1975 to 1977. Curley was New York City's Commissioner of Pub ...

( ambassador to France), Joseph Zappala (

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Mel Sembler Melvin Floyd Sembler (born May 10, 1930) is an American former diplomat who was the United States Ambassador to Italy (2001–2005), and Ambassador to Australia and Nauru (1989–1993). He has also served as chairman of the board of the Sembler ...

(

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

), Frederic Bush Morris (

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

), and

Joy Silverman Joy Silverman (born April 8, 1947) is an American socialite and Republican Party operative and fundraiser. Early life and education Silverman was born Joy Fererh on April 8, 1947, the daughter of Jeanette (née Rothenberg) and Ben Fererh. In 195 ...

(

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

). Secchia was the CEO and chairman of the board of

Universal Forest Products UFP Industries, Inc. was founded in Michigan in 1955 as a supplier of lumber to the manufactured housing industry. Today UFP Industries is a multibillion-dollar holding company with subsidiaries around the globe that serve three markets: retail, ...

, a company that manufactures engineered wood components. He was Chairman of the River City Food Company which has 29 restaurants, catering facilities, and banquet locations in the states of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. In 1994 he was appointed to chair the Secchia Commission I by Michigan governor

John Engler John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he later worked for Business Roundtable, where ''The Hill'' c ...

, which was focused on improving government services. The Secchia Commission II focused on public sector pensions. He received the

Cavaliere di Gran Croce The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

(The Knight of the Great Cross). He also was awarded the Department of State

Distinguished Honor Award The Distinguished Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or i ...

during his service as ambassador to Italy, an award given to serving ambassadors and to non-career ambassadors. Secchia served for twelve years on the board for

John Cabot University John Cabot University (JCU) is a private American-style university in Rome, Italy. It was founded in 1972 and it offers undergraduate degrees, graduate degrees, and study abroad programs to English-speaking students. The university has more tha ...

in Rome. Secchia was a member of the

National Italian American Foundation National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

Council of 1000. He was founding president of the West Michigan Lodge of the

Order of Sons of Italy in America The Order Sons of Italy in America ( it, Ordine Figli d’Italia in America, OSIA) is the largest and the oldest Italian American fraternal organization in the United States. A similar organization exists in Canada. It has more than 600,000 me ...

; he inaugurated the Festa Italiana, the region's largest annual ethnic festival and has participated in and sponsored many Italian-American events. He was awarded the NIAF Special Achievement Award for International Affairs, and lent his name to The Founding Values Initiative Award... the "Secchia Award for Heartfelt Commitment."

Philanthropy

In 2010, Secchia made a $1 million outright donation to Michigan State University, to be used to build a new stadium for the women's softball team at

Old College Field Old College Field is an area on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. The school broke ground in 1900 to provide a place for the varsity baseball team to play. Today, the area includes facilities for baseball, socc ...

, named Secchia Stadium. A building on the MSU College of Human Medicine, Grand Rapids campus was named after Secchia. The building is part of the

Grand Rapids Medical Mile Grand Rapids Medical Mile is a designated area within the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Grand Rapids, Michigan. It began with medical-related development in the Hillside District of Grand Rapids, Michigan, bordering both sides of Michigan Street ...

. A building on the Grand Valley State University downtown Grand Rapids Pew Campus, built in 2000, was named after Secchia.

Death

Secchia died on October 21, 2020, after contracting

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan The first confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. state of Michigan were discovered on March 10, 2020, one day before the outbreak of the disease was officially declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. As of December 20, 2022 ...

on top of other health issues over several months.

References

* "Secchia provides naming gift for new MSU softball stadium", ''Michigan State University News''

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Secchia, Peter F. 1937 births 2020 deaths People from Englewood, New Jersey People from Tenafly, New Jersey Tenafly High School alumni Military personnel from New Jersey Ambassadors of the United States to Italy Michigan State University alumni American people of Italian descent Rice University people Michigan Republicans United States Marines Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan 20th-century American diplomats