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 nations, the Kingdom of Sardinia and then the Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946), Kingdom of Italy, with a break in relations fro ...

and

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

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. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of Engle ...

. He grew up in nearby Tenafly and graduated from

Tenafly High School Tenafly High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school in Tenafly in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as the lone secondary school of the Tenafly Public Sc ...

and then went on to attend

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

. He left the 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 or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

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 United States census, 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 Metro Detroit, ...

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 the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

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

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

. He was on the national advisory committee of the 1988 George Bush for President Committee. Secchia founded the Lake Michigan Conference, and was a national co-chair of the Dole 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 Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Mel Sembler Melvin Floyd Sembler (May 10, 1930 – October 31, 2023) was an American 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 th ...

(

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

), Frederic Bush Morris (

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

), and Joy Silverman (

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

). Secchia was the CEO and chairman of the board of Universal Forest Products, 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 peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. 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 politician, lawyer, businessman, and lobbyist who served as the 46th governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. Considered one of the country's top lobbyists, he is a member of the Republi ...

, 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 () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republic, it is awarded fo ...

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

Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs ...

Distinguished Honor Award The Distinguished Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State and USAID. Similar versions of the same award existed for the former U.S. Information Agency and Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. It is presented in recogniti ...

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 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 than 700 ...

in Rome. Secchia was a member of the

National Italian American Foundation Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, with significant communities also residi ...

Council of 1000. He was founding president of the West Michigan Lodge of the Order of Sons of Italy in America; he inaugurated the

Festa Italiana Henry Maier Festival Park is a 75-acre festival park located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on the shore Lake Michigan and is the site of the annual Summerfest musical festival and the home of the American Family Insurance Amphitheater. History B ...

, 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, named Secchia Stadium. Secchia Hall, a building on the MSU College of Human Medicine Grand Rapids campus, is named after Secchia. The building is part of the Grand Rapids Medical Mile. Secchia Hall, a residence hall on the

Grand Valley State University Grand Valley State University (GVSU, GV, or Grand Valley) is a public university in Allendale Charter Township, Michigan, Allendale, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1960 as Grand Valley State College. Its main campus is situated on ...

's Pew Campus, is also 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 the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Michigan The first confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the American 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, ...

, 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 Businesspeople from Englewood, New Jersey Tenafly High School alumni People from Tenafly, New Jersey Military personnel from Bergen County, 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 People from Grand Rapids, Michigan