Shrewsbury – Anthony J. Pignataro, 81, longtime Shrewsbury resident, passed away with his family gathered by his side Monday, April 20, 2015 after a hard-fought battle with Vascular Dementia in the Beaumont Skilled Nursing Center in Worcester. The family would like to thank the nurses and staff on the second floor for their outstanding care and compassion shown to their father.
He was born Feb. 15, 1934, son of Salvatore and Margaret (Stellato) Pignataro. A three-sport standout athlete, he earned all-city honors in football, basketball and baseball at Boy’s Trade High School in Worcester and was inducted as a charter member to the Worcester City Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007. He proudly served in the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict. He was happily married with love and devotion to Ann Marie Hayes for 57 years while raising their family in Shrewsbury.
Anthony worked as a toolmaker, many years for the Nypro Manufacturing Company in Clinton before retiring. A simple man who cherished his Italian heritage, he was a member and former vice-president, president of the Italian American Victory Club in Shrewsbury (IAVC). He was also the longtime chairman of the Bocce League of the Italian American Victory Club in Shrewsbury (IAVC), and took great pride in building this league. He was a member of the Shrewsbury Men’s Club, St Anne’s Church and longtime member and coach of the Shrewsbury Little League.
He was an avid golfer; loved to play cards with family and at the IAVC with friends. Family vacations in the summer were always special, as was the special dinners, holidays and occasions when he could be surrounded by his family.
Anthony is survived by his wife, Ann Marie; his four sons, Robert Pignataro, James Pignataro and his wife Mary, and Michael Pignataro, all of Shrewsbury, and Anthony Pignataro Jr. and his wife Amy Beth in New York; a brother, James F. Pignataro of Worcester; three grandchildren, Kayla, Annemarie and Arlo; and nieces, nephews, extended family members, and many friends.
Friends and relatives are invited to calling hours Thursday, April 23, from 4-8 p.m., in the Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel, 370 Plantation St., Worcester. His funeral will be held Friday, April 24 from the funeral home with a procession to St Anne’s Church, 130 Boston Tpke., Shrewsbury, where his funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Burial will follow in Worcester County Memorial Park in Paxton.
In lieu of flowers, memorial remembrances in his name can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association of Massachusetts/New Hampshire, 480 Pleasant St., Watertown, Ma 02472 (www.alz.org/manh).
