Luigi Greco, an entrepreneur who started a series of Frank’s Pizza restaurants, died Saturday of pancreatic cancer. He was 73.
After spending his first 12 years in Rocca Di Neto, Italy, he immigrated to Brooklyn, New York, with his parents and seven siblings in 1962. He spoke no English and found attending school difficult, so he would leave to search for Italian neighborhoods. He stocked shelves, washed dishes and delivered groceries in local Italian bakeries, grocery stores and mom-and-pop pizzerias.
When he was 21, Greco bought his first pizzeria in Mineola, New York. In 1982, he relocated to the Roanoke Valley and opened the first Frank’s Pizza in Rocky Mount, which his brother still operates. Nine years later, he opened another Frank’s Pizza location in Hunting Hills, which he ran for nearly a decade. Greco then purchased two more locations in Roanoke — at 3743 Brambleton Ave. and 5933 Williamson Road.
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Luigi Greco tossing a pizza.
His family opened additional Frank’s Pizza locations in Roanoke, Salem, Bedford and Botetourt. There are now seven locations.
Rhonda Thomas, Greco’s widow, said he formed relationships with family and friends through humor.
“Coming at that age, he ended up with diversity in both languages,” Thomas said. “Trying to pronounce a lot of the Italian stuff was funny, and then trying to pronounce a lot of the English words was even more funny. He did well with it. He played along with it and would laugh with everybody.
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Luigi Greco, a lifelong pizza maker and restaurant owner, with one of his creations.
“I think a lot of the people that know him remember those things about him, especially when it comes to his family and his American family and friends.”
Although he lacked much of an education, Thomas said his entrepreneurial drive helped Greco succeed.
“He had a drive and a vision for the pizzerias,” she said. “He also dabbled a little bit in real estate, with investments. He came from a country, small town, Italian hillside life to the United States and really succeeded with all the Frank’s pizzerias and buying up some real estate and investing his money.”
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Greco
Thomas said Greco loved helping his “large Italian family” — in her words. He helped family members start other Frank’s locations in the area.
“He loved sharing with everybody — especially his family, his nieces and nephews and brothers,” Thomas said. “He loved his family and he wanted to see all of them succeed. He was the one that set them up in all these Frank’s. He started them, he sold them to family members and he wanted to keep the Greco name in the Frank’s.”
Thomas reflected on Greco’s acts of service.
“Even the police department here in town, if they wanted to order 25 or 30 pizzas, he never charged them,” Thomas said. “He was like, ‘This is my gift to them.’ He always wanted to give because he loved and he had a passion for his pizza and his recipes. He had all of his own recipes and he loved sharing them.”