Anthony (Tony/Bud/Dad/Papá) Bommarito passed away on February 18, the 97th year of his life — a remarkable milestone for time spent on this planet rivaled only by the Galapagos tortoise and Energizer bunny. Birthdays be damned, his body just kept going and going and going, albeit not without the aid of a walker in his later years. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, he was clearly a child of the Great Depression. He learned what it was like to sit down to dinner without enough food on the table, and as a result, he never took a meal for granted the remainder of his life. (Taking inventory in his kitchen pantry once revealed 14 bottles of catsup that he had purchased over time because “you never know when these things are going to go on sale again.” When Fidel Castro overthrew the government of Cuba, he immediately went out and bought two dozen bags of sugar.) He flew bombers as an Army Air Corps pilot in World War II, and proudly told his children, grandchildren, and captive house guests every story he felt was worth telling whenever given the opportunity. He wed the love of his life, Evelyn Mildred Perricone, with whom he celebrated 70 years of marriage before her passing in 2017. (We’re pretty sure she went first because after 70 years a man shouldn’t need someone else to pull back the covers on his bed so he can go to sleep.) In 1948, the newlywed couple settled in Houston where they started their family, and he began a career in the insurance business. (If he had a mantra, it would have been “Nothing happens without the sale!”) In 1966, the family of six moved to Austin.
He was a Texas Republican before it was cool — a conservative’s conservative who often took positions that some might describe as just to the right of Atilla the Hun. He did not approve of foreign cars, particularly those manufactured by the countries he fought against in the war. He had a bark that was louder than his bite, but not by much. He played the violin, never met a nap he didn’t like, and shined every shoe in his closet weekly. He was the least mechanically-gifted person that ever held a screwdriver. If you wanted to learn some new swear words, all you had to do was give him a model airplane kit and ask him for help putting it together. He paid his bills on time every time, allotted 15¢ a week to each of his children if they checked off every box on their list of chores, and loved his family more than words could express.
He is survived by his four children, Ann Armstrong (spouse, Terry), Guy Bommarito (spouse, Mimi), Joan Lovell (spouse, John), Marla Bommarito-Crouch (spouse, Michael); eleven grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren. (With regards to descendants, while he tolerated his children’s and grandchildren’s pets, he was not a dog person. Or a cat person. Or a bird person. And, don’t even ask about the time his oldest grandson decided to raise ferrets.)
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation to the Salvation Army.
Visitation will be held on Monday evening, February 24, from 5 to 8 p.m. at Cook-Walden Chapel of the Hills Funeral Home, 9700 Anderson Mill Road in Austin. A rosary will take place at 7 p.m.
Funeral services are at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, February 25, at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, 10205 N FM 620 in Austin, followed by a 3 p.m. committal service at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery, 11463 SH 195, in Killeen.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.cookwaldenchapelofthehill.com.
