Tony and I began teaching at Phillips Junior High School in Chapel Hill in 1972. Our close friendship really began when we served as co-advisors of the Phillips yearbook in 1976. The pictures are our faculty photos from Epilog ’77. For all the years of our friendship (40+ but who’s counting), Tony and I would frequently ask each other how we were lucky enough to be chosen by our principal extraordinaire, Herb Allred. Lucky indeed. Phillips was a magical place back in those days. Tony had a gift for teaching, and I learned so much from him….that we didn’t teach subjects, we taught students….that students sometimes come into our classrooms with baggage and it was our obligation to provide them with a safe and caring learning environment….that students will rise to high expectations. Tony was not only a teacher of students, he was a teacher of teachers.
Tony’s love of our country was infectious. He was my go-to for U.S. road trips and he helped me plan so many amazing itineraries. My love of national parks is due to Tony’s example. He would always text throughout each trip to make sure I was getting the most out of the plan we had designed together. He will always be with me when I’m visiting a national park. Tony and I shared a love of politics. When I was living in Chapel Hill, he would come over to watch election returns with me. When I moved to New Jersey, it would be phone calls and then texts.
During the past few years, I called him my political therapist. He always had the same answer for me when I asked him if our country would survive – a firm “yes”. He was also one of the few people I knew who loved the music of Phil Ochs as much as I did. Ours was an unlikely friendship between a guy from Hickory, NC and a girl from New York City. But that was Tony, always open to people from all walks of life.
Tony was a friend not only to me but to my husband Neal and our daughters Rachel and Jill. We all adored him. How lucky was I to be counted among the many people Tony called friend? Lucky indeed. May his memory be a blessing to all who knew and loved him.