Vincent Grippa, 93

Vincent Grippa, the owner of Jewels by Virtu on Main Street in East Hampton for nearly 20 years, died at his Dune Alpin Farm residence here on Aug. 4. Mr. Grippa, who had had two strokes within the last eight years, was 93.

Born on March 19, 1923, in New York City, he was the youngest of eight children of Vincenzo and Iole Grippa. He grew up in an Italian neighborhood in East Harlem and was home-schooled as a child. His father, a jeweler, had taught him the trade, and when his father died, he went to work at the age of 16 for one of his older brothers in his watch repair shop.

Mr. Grippa lived for a while in Geneva, Switzerland, working for a small import-export company, before returning to work in the city. He moved to East Hampton in the late 1960s to open Jewels by Virtu, which was closed in 1997 when he retired. During his working life in the village, he built two commercial buildings on the Circle, which he sold after having the first stroke.

He also owned apartments in New York City and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Both were sold in the last two years.

Mr. Grippa had a number of interests, among them art, fashion, classical music, and opera. He was a member of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in East Hampton.

His longtime partner, Dale Werner, died in 1995. He is survived by a sister, Vera Avery of East Quogue. Funeral services were held at St. Luke’s on Saturday, the Rev. Denis Brunelle officiating, with burial following at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church’s cemetery on Cedar Street.