Anthony W. Festa Sr.

Festa, Anthony "Tony", age 88, of Plant City, Fla., passed away on July 2, 2011 following an extended illness. He was born on March 6th, 1923. Tony was the son of the late Anthony and Carmella Festa. He was preceded in death by his 11 siblings (John and John who died at birth, Minnie, Ninetta, Philomena, Daniel, Frank, Ralph, Albeno, and Armand all of whom lived in the Pittsburgh, PA area, and Henry of Buffalo, NY), and his son-in-law, Dan Crawford of Mill Village, PA.

Tony was born and raised in the suburbs of Pittsburgh and moved to Plant City in 1980. He was a former Marine. He was employed as a silk-screen designer in his younger days. Always artistic, he received recognition for several of his ink drawings at the Plant City Strawberry Festival. He won an award for Best Builder of the Year for an airplane he built which he flew by remote control as a member of the Flying Club. He coached Little League Baseball in Penn Hills (PA) when his sons played. Although a Floridian for the past several years, he remained loyal to his beloved Pittsburgh Steelers and Pirates. In fact, shortly before his death he asked if the Pirates were playing .500 baseball. He never missed a televised game! Tony is survived by his wife of 67 years, Anna Mae (Zoric) of Plant City; a daughter, Nannette Crawford of Mill Village PA; two sons, David and Anthony Jr and his wife Tara (Reese), all of Plant City; his grandchildren , Casey Crawford of Wexford, PA; Zoe Festa of Plant City; and Nikki Crawford Patton of Grayson, GA, his great grandchildren, Danielle Crawford of Wexford, PA; and Von and Gavin Patton of Grayson, GA; a sister-in-law and brother-in-law Mildred and Henry Schultz of Turtle Creek, PA along with several nieces , nephews, and friends. The family would like to thank South Florida Baptist Hospital (Plant City) and the Health Center of Plant City, the two places that he called home during the several months of his illness. These facilities cared for him with kindness. Visitation with family and friends will be 6 to 8 pm Wednesday, July 6, 2011, with a funeral service on Thursday, July 7th at 11 a.m. at Wells Memorial Chapel.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Plant City Parks and Recreation, 1904 South Park Rd., Plant City, FL 335613-8113.

Arrangements under the direction of Wells Memorial Funeral Home, Plant City, FL.