April 24, 2020. Anthony is predeceased by his daughter Barbara Leary. He is survived by his wife, Carmella Figaro; children, Susan (Alan) Figaro Grace, David Figaro Richard (Catherine) Figaro; son-in-law, James F. Leary, Jr.; grandchildren, Jessica Leary, Stephanie Leary, Ryan (Amanda) Grace, Meghan Grace, Nicholas Figaro Alex Figaro; great-grandchildren, John Patrick Grace Michael Grace. Anthony's burial in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery was privately held with his family in attendance. Future services to be announced at an appropriate time. In lieu of flowers donations may be sent to Aquinas Institute, 1127 Dewey Ave., Roch., NY 14613 in Anthony's memory. Click here to sign Anthony's Virtual Register Book Anthony John Figaro Brief BIO Anthony was born on August 2, 1933 and raised in Rochester, NY. He was an only child to Mary and James Figaro. Anthony attended Holy Rosary Grammar school and went on to graduate from the Aquinas Institute in 1952. While at Aquinas, he played the clarinet and enjoyed boxing in the Mission Bouts. Shortly after graduating high school, Anthony's mother, Mary Figaro, died of a heart ailment. Following her death, Anthony and his father lived with his aunt and uncle until he enlisted in the United States Army. Anthony completed basic training at Fort Dix and was stationed in Alaska where he primarily worked as a cook for 3 years during the Korean War. He was introduced to his future wife, Carmella, by his cousin Barbara while home on furlough. Anthony married Carmella on May 4th, 1957. The pair initially resided on Fulton Ave before moving to a home on Electric Avenue where they raised their four children, Susan, Barbara, David and Richard. While living in the city the Figaro family were parishioners of Sacred Heart Cathedral. Anthony and Carmella eventually moved to Greece, NY where they have lived for the past 30 years. Following his military service, Anthony was first employed by the City of Rochester and then later by the Monroe County Water Authority. Anthony worked for the Monroe County Water Authority for 34 years as a water operator, until he retired at age 56. Anthony's interests included a love for crossword puzzles, running, cooking, baking, going out to dinner, traveling with his wife, shopping (buying two or more of everything), and spending time with his grandchildren. Even though he wasn't much of a swimmer, Anthony and Carmella loved to have their children and grandchildren over to swim in their backyard pool. Anthony was a CYO basketball coach and a member of the Greece American Legion for several years. Stories that help us remember Dad/Grandpa: Dad was a great supporter of Aquinas. He frequently went up to strangers to ask where their children went to school and to encourage them to send their children to Aquinas. At Crimson Ridge Assisted Living the staff would join him in the "A Q U I N A S" chant. Grand-daughter Stephanie shared: "I will always remember the stories he would tell us about attending Aquinas and all the memories he had made there. It made him so happy to know that my sister Jessica and I were going to his alumni high school, another generation of the family following in his footsteps. He would wear his apparel, attend the alumni football games, and pretty much tell everyone he knew that two of his grandchildren were going to Aquinas." In addition to Aquinas football, Anthony loved to watch Notre Dame Football and had the pleasure of attending two of their games in South Bend, Indiana! Dad often reminisced about his military service in Alaska. He would share how a large moose was walking towards him on the street just outside the army barracks and how the roof of the mess hall almost blew off during a windstorm when someone opened the door! He would tell stories about the US submarine in the Bering Strait spying on the Russians. Dad loved his grandchildren and would often take them to Charlotte Beach in the summertime to play in the sand, picnic, ride the carousel, fish on the pier, fly kites, and then finish the day with Abbott's frozen custard. He attended their sports games and dance recitals. He would save all his loose change in piggy banks for Alex and Nicky. He was always ecstatic to receive new pictures of his great-grandchildren in the mail and to see everyone in person for big family dinners. Ryan reflects that "while he was hard to handle, especially in his later years, he never lost his love for his grandchildren and great grandchildren. He always smiled and showed joy when he had his grandchildren near". Stephanie reflects "growing up my grandfather was to me always very outspoken, protective, and determined. He loved each and every one of his grandchildren so much. The smile that would come across his face when he got to spend time with us was priceless. He would come to my soccer games and a few of my dance recitals, always so happy to cheer on his "Stephanucci" as he would call me. He was always so proud of his children and grandchildren in all of our endeavors." Meghan remembers spending a lot of time with grandpa in the summer time especially in the last few years, singing and dancing to the old Italian music in the dining room. "We would sing on our drive over to the Greece Community Center to walk on the track. Grandpa would listen to his buddies' conversations and chime in with his usual rhymes and wise-cracks. After we walked on the track, it was time for coffee downstairs with the gang. Sometimes we would make our way over to Soho's for coffee just so he could get a glimpse of the new merchandise at the Goodwill." Dad was a bargain shopper. He would go to thrift stores, the dollar store, home depot, and buy multiples of everything at the grocery store. Before his grandkids would leave for college every year, each of them would go "grocery shopping" in grandpa's garage. Several times, he purchased an item from the thrift store that Mom would eventually re-donate, only to have him coincidentally purchase the same item again. Anthony is predeceased by his daughter Barbara Leary. He is survived by his wife, Carmella Figaro; children, Susan (Alan) Figaro Grace, David Figaro Richard (Catherine) Figaro; son-in-law, James F. Leary, Jr.; grandchildren, Jessica Leary, Stephanie Leary, Ryan (Amanda) Grace, Meghan Grace, Nicholas Figaro Alex To donate to Aquinas, follow this link: https://www.aquinasinstitute.com/give-to-aq/make-a-gift