Todd Anthony Watt

Todd Anthony Watt was born on May 8, 1944 in Moline, Illinois and passed peacefully at his home in Ocoee, Florida on December 5, 2023. He is preceded in death by his parents, Lucille “Lou” (England) and Charles “Tod” Watt. Todd is survived by his loving and devoted wife Cynthia “Cindy” (Fillmen) Watt and daughters Heidi Watt and Rebecca “Becky” Watt; grandson Joseph Muley V and his dad Joe Muley IV; sisters Dede (Richard †) Weerts and Debbie (Jack) Peterson, as well as their children and grandchildren, whom he very much enjoyed connecting with on their trips to Orlando.

As a result of growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, Todd became a lifelong loyal Chicago Bears and White Sox fan, despite the recurring disappointments (Super Bowl XXV and 2005 World Series notwithstanding). In 1962, Todd graduated from Hinsdale Central High School and was determined to escape the cold. Accordingly, he applied to three colleges in Florida.

Initially, Todd landed at Jacksonville University (JU) with hopes of playing baseball in the sun, having finally overcome a youth battling Osgood-Schlatter disease, a painful shinbone condition that can affect adolescents during growth spurt years. When he didn’t make grades his first fall semester, those plans were altered. Always resilient, Todd took on two new sports that earned him seven letters at JU, soccer (four) and rowing (three).

While attending JU (1962-1967), he served as a resident assistant and was inducted into the Green Key Honor Society, a true honor to a former struggling student. Most significantly, Todd established several lifelong friendships and started a JU family rowing legacy. Decades later, both daughters secured rowing scholarships at his alma mater and won silver medals at the infamous intercollegiate Dad Vail Regatta while pursuing their own baccalaureate degrees. Following Heidi’s and Becky’s rowing careers and winning the affection of their teammates and generations of JU rowers and coaches were among Todd’s greatest joys and sources of pride.

After graduating from JU, Todd moved to Long Beach, California to figure out what was next for his life’s direction. In 1968, that pursuit led him to the Marine Corps and the jungle of South Vietnam where he served as an both an infantry platoon and company commander. Like his hero, Ulysses S. Grant, Todd flourished in military service where he emerged as a strong leader who earned the respect and affection of those he commanded, with remarkable success returning them to safety. Upon his return from Vietnam, he was stationed in Orlando, FL and appointed as a casualty assistance officer where he made casualty calls to families of fallen marines.

In Orlando, Todd met Cindy Fillmen at church, and they wed on July 17, 1971. Following discharge from active duty in September that year, he began working for a brand-new Florida enterprise, the Walt Disney World Company. When Disney opened its doors in October 1971, he was working in merchandising but within the year, transitioned to human resources where he would work for the next fifteen. After a brief two-year departure to try his hand at the US Postal Service and at Morton Thiokol, Todd returned to WDW where he served in housekeeping and custodial management for the next ten years at Downtown Disney and several of the company’s most prestigious resorts. Upon retiring from Disney after 25 years of service, Todd spent the next eight in housekeeping management at Lowe’s Hotel’s Portofino Bay Resort, Universal Studios, FL.

Throughout his life, Todd amassed several other points of pride. He ended up with degrees from all three colleges he applied to in the 1960s. Utilizing the GI Bill to help supplement the family income while raising two daughters, he added a BA in History from Florida Southern College and a MAT in History from Rollins College to his BS in Business Administration from JU. After his junior year at JU, Todd completed Outward Bound mountaineering training in Colorado. Doing push-ups in the frigid waters forever tarnished his love of the mountains but proved advantageous in boot camp and in the DMZ. Also of note is that in his 35-year civilian career, Todd never missed a day of work, and he even became certified as an alcohol abuse counselor.

Throughout his life, Todd maintained contact with childhood friends, several from college, and plenty of others from work life. He also built community at home with wonderful neighbors who served as lifelines on several occasions. Todd genuinely took an interest in people and invested in many whom he encountered on life’s path. He really didn’t know a stranger. If you shared a common interest or he took an interest in you, chances are good you received one or more letters from Todd, likely with a newspaper clipping or trinket included.

Connecting with people was easy for him, in part, because he had such vast interests. When becoming a drummer himself did not pan out, Todd became a drum historian with a particular love of big band drums and the infamous Buddy Rich. At one point he had collected over 600 drum LPs and was certain he had compiled one of the best collections around. Todd also had a keen knowledge of baseball history and relished his unofficial designation as the JU Rowing Historian.

Most notably, Todd found his angel in Cindy, his wife of 52 years, and their two daughters were his pride and joy from the moment they entered the world. Never was there a more devoted and present father. He attended nearly every sporting event of theirs and sat through plenty of dance recitals and baton performances too. Todd reveled in all their successes and supported them in all they did and who they were. He was an equally proud “granddaddy” of Joe V and leaves behind an unmatched legacy of love and support of family and friends.

A funeral service for Todd will be held Saturday, January 6, 2024 from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM at Woodlawn Funeral Home, 400 Woodlawn Cemetery Road, Gotha, Florida 34734. A reception will follow at the same location from 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM. Then a private off-site graveside service will occur from 2:30 PM to 3:00 PM.

In lieu of flowers, please consider supporting fallen and catastrophically injured veterans and first responders and their families through a donation to Tunnels to Towers (https://t2t.org/). You can hear about Todd’s personal military experience in Vietnam in his own words through the UCF Community Veteran’s History Project at the link provided: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/veteransoralhistories/105/