Dr. Anthony J Polito, Sr

Dr. Anthony J. Polito, Sr., 95, a noted area educator and decorated WWII Veteran, passed away peacefully in his sleep at Oakdale Rehabilitation Center in West Boylston on Wednesday, May 13th, 2020. He is now reunited with his loving wife of 67 years Florence M. (Donnelly) Polito, who predeceased him just nine days earlier on May 4th also at Oakdale Rehabilitation Center.         

Anthony was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, uncle, brother and son. He touched thousands of young lives as an educator for nearly four decades in the Worcester Public Schools. He provided countless hours of free counseling to individuals and couples for 50 years through Trinity Tree Counseling Clinic, an organization he founded to help all people access these services. His life is defined by a passion for education, devotion to family and faith, and service to community and country. He was truly a great member of the famed Greatest Generation.

Anthony was born in Worcester to parents Frank and Antonina Polito, who both had emigrated to America from Sicily. Anthony was the youngest of nine siblings. A child of the Great Depression, he was an ambitious and industrious youth. He delivered newspapers, grew vegetables, and raised animals to help feed his family. He excelled in school and entered the U.S. Army after graduating from North High School in 1943. He proudly served his country as an infantryman. Anthony  landed at Utah Beach during the invasion of Normandy and was seriously wounded in the Battle of Cherbourg. He earned the Bronze Star for his actions in battle. Anthony  rarely discussed his wartime experiences and his family did not know the extent of his injuries until an emergency room doctor treating him for a recent accident shared the results of a full body scan.

Upon his return to Worcester, Anthony helped his older brother Joseph establish a construction company, working on such projects as homes, hospitals, water and sewer lines, roads, and bridges. He wanted to further his education and entered Fitchburg State Teachers College where he completed both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in just five years. Anthony was class president, class marshal, and a member of the Epsilon Pi Tau honor society. It was at Fitchburg State that he met the love of his life, Florence Donnelly. They were married in 1952.

Anthony completed post graduate study at Worcester State College, Assumption College, Harvard, and M.I.T. He completed his doctorate and CAGS as a member of Phi Delta Kappa Honor society with a dissertation on behavior from Boston University. He taught and served as an administrator in the Worcester Public Schools for nearly 40 years. He held licenses for the positions of teacher, supervising principal, psychologist and superintendent. He founded the Higher Horizons Program which helped to address the needs of children attending inner city schools. He served his fellow teachers as vice chairman and coordinating counsel of the Educational Association of Worcester and vice chairman and director of the Teachers Credit Union. Anthony  was also president of the Assistant Principals Association. He  lectured for several years as an adjunct professor at Lowell State University.

Anthony was active in the community serving as director and president of the Worcester Public Library. He also spent several years on the Worcester Veterans Council and the Worcester Historical Commission. He was a parishioner of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church where he served as ecumenical and parish council chairman, lector, and eucharistic minister. He founded the Mt. Carmel Tutoring Institute and Reading Clinic. He was a major patron of St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer and a member of the Sodality at the College of the Holy Cross for over 62 years.

Upon his retirement in 1985, he received a letter from President Ronald Reagan who wrote; “Throughout your career, you have built an admirable record of dedication and achievement in sharing your talents and leadership. You have reached out to and touched the minds of countless children and adults who will contribute to the betterment of our nation.”

Anthony is survived by his cherished family, his four sons, Anthony J. Polito, Jr., Martin Polito and his wife Karen, all of Worcester, Frank Polito and his fiancé Carina Dolcino of New Hampshire, and Jim Polito and his wife Kathleen of Shrewsbury; five grandchildren he adored, Michael, Stephen and his wife Lindsey, David, Victoria, and Stephanie Polito; many nieces, nephews, and extended family and friends. Besides his dear parents, he was predeceased by his loving siblings, Rose, Pauline, Lena, Mary, Josephine, Caroline, Joseph, and Salvatore “Sam.”

A Joint funeral Mass for Anthony and Florence who passed away on May 4^th will be held Friday, May 22nd at 11:00 am in St John’s Church, 44 Temple Street.  To view the services online, please go to www.mercadantefuneral.com and click on live services. Burial with military honors will follow in St Bernard’s Cemetery, Fitchburg.   Anthony and Florence’s sons will receive friends attending the Mass from 10:30 to 11 am prior to the mass.    The MERCADANTE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL, 370 Plantation St. is honored to be assisting the family with arrangements. The Polito family wishes to thank the staff of Notre Dame Health Care Hospice and Oakdale Rehabilitation Center for their compassionate care. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Dr. Anthony '48, '49 and Florence '50 Polito Family Memorial Trust & Foundation at Fitchburg State University, 160 Pearl St, Fitchburg, MA 01420.

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