Joe DeCamara ’92: The Voice of Philadelphia Mornings

As Joe DeCamara ’92 walked through the open Montessori spaces in the Fontbonne Building, a flood of memories poured out.

“I used to hide over there,” joked DeCamara, who was on campus for Alumni Career Day on March 29, 2023.

“We always knew where you were,” responded Sister Jean Laurich with a smile.

A stroll down memory lane brought up sweet memories for the popular Philadelphia sports radio talk show host, who left NFA after second grade. While DeCamara may have left NFA at an early age, NFA never left him.

“I have tremendous love for Norwood,” said DeCamara. “It’s hard for me to fully articulate Norwood’s role in my life because I was so young when at NFA, so it’s hard for me to grasp it all in hindsight. But clearly Norwood played an enormous role in my life. There was so much nurturing in those kindergarten, first grade, and second grade years. Sister Karen Washabagh and Sister Jean and many others were so wonderful to me. My father passed away while I was in kindergarten, so that year and subsequent years were very difficult for me personally and for my family. But we were bolstered through our grief by incredible love and support from the NFA community. There also was an incredible amount of learning in those early years for me, obviously. I feel such gratitude to so many that helped me at Norwood. I have nothing but absolute love for Norwood to this day. It’ll always be that way for me.”

DeCamara went on to St. Joseph’s Preparatory School and Fairfield University before climbing his way up the ultra-competitive sports entertainment industry.

A sports fanatic growing up, DeCamara spent countless hours in his basement broadcasting games to himself on a tape recorder or a drumstick, according to a February 2023 Philadelphia Inquirer article. He started his career off in the financial sector, but eventually decided to pursue his dream of working in sports. He landed an internship at WBCM-AM (1490) in Bucks County with the help of Eagles broadcaster Merrill Reese. That internship evolved into a call-in show from 10pm to midnight on Mondays and Thursdays, which featured his mother, Terese, as his producer and calls from his four older siblings — Phil, Andrew, Matt, Nancy — and uncle, George Wolf. DeCamara did that gig for 3 ½ years while making $5.15 an hour.

His hard work over the years at WBCM-AM (1490), WIP-AM (610), WPEN-FM (950), 97.5 (FM) The Fanatic, ESPN Radio, the Philadelphia Soul, and WYSP-FM (94.1) paid off in a big way. On February 20, 2023, DeCamara was named the new voice of Philadelphia sports talk radio as the drive-time morning host at 94.1, arguably the biggest gig in town.

“It’s very gratifying,” said DeCamara. “It’s been a long road. There were some very tough years while trying to make it in this profession. But I feel eternally grateful to many people who helped me along the way. I’m glad I stuck it out. I’m very happy to be at this point in my career. It’s a lot of fun.”