Helping Other Veterans

Marco Island resident Joe Varano enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1963, inspired by the military service of an uncle close to his family. 

“My uncle Mike was a great, great man,” Varano said, noting that he was awarded the Silver Star twice for his valor in combat in Germany during World War II. “He was a hero. I wanted to be like him.” 

Born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, Varano completed Officer Candidate School in 1965 as a second lieutenant and was deployed to the Fort Knox Amor School in Kentucky as Tank Company Commander and tactical armor instructor. There, he managed 17 tank crews, instructing his men on communications, track vehicle maintenance, gunnery proficiency, and land navigation, serving under George Patton IV, who was commandant of the armor school. While at Fort Knox, Varano was awarded a performance commendation by Patton.  

In 1968, Cpt. Varano was deployed to Vietnam to serve as an armor advisor teaching the same tank skills to South Vietnam’s armor forces in the cities of Saigon and Hue in preparation for the Tet Offensive counterattack and defensive position reinforcement. 

“We’d put them through simulated situations, evaluated them and presented the results to the ARVN top brass,” he said. “They weren’t initially as gung-ho as we would have liked them to be, but over time they became better prepared and appreciated our presence.” 

He returned home in 1969, re-entered civilian life, and took a job in the marketing department of Fisher Scientific, a laboratory supply company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the time. Varano also joined the National Guard, rising to the rank of Major before retiring from the reserves in 1981. 

Varano quickly rose through the ranks at Fisher, traveling the world extensively, and after spending 24 years with the company, retired to Marco Island. He credits much of his success in the corporate world to his service in the Army. 

“The Army really offered me the opportunity to exercise my organizational skills,” he said. “You had to put together tactical programs and plans with timetables and lead your people to follow them. When I went to my first job interview with Fisher, they recognized that I had that talent.” 

Varano has been a long-time member of both the Marco Island Men’s Club, becoming president of the group in 2010, and is currently the finance officer for American Legion Post 404 in Marco. 

In that role, he’s been instrumental in helping secure the funding for the planned Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Marco’s Veterans Community Park. 

To Varano, his role at the Legion is just an extension of his lifelong service to others. 

“The programs we put together, as far as I’m concerned, are as good as it gets,” he said. “Because I am a veteran, I find it rewarding to help other veterans. There’s camaraderie, there’s knowledge, there’s training. It’s just a great group of people.”