Anthony Cantore

Anthony "Tony" Cantore, 75, of Guilderland, New York passed away on January 13, 2023 at St. Peter's Hospital in Albany surrounded by family and friends. He waged a quiet battle with declining health for several years, rarely slowing down, but always ready to share his loving heart with this wife and family. Tony's fondness for teaching and mentorship to his children, grandchildren, coworkers and friends will stand the test of time. His passion was history and government, and he was always ready for a good debate. Despite his physical struggle, Tony was a hero to all and stayed strong until God called him home.

Tony was born in Manhattan to the late Louis and Antoinette (Cassara) Cantore. He grew up in a traditional, second-generation immigrant Italian family in the New York City. In his youth, he stood out with his adventurous spirit and quick wit. As he entered high school, he was awarded a prestigious opportunity from the Boys' Club of New York (BCNY) to attend Mount Hermon, a private boarding school in northern Massachusetts. This spark opened the door Tony needed to earn the first college degree in his family from St Lawrence University, 1969, and eventually graduate with a Juris Doctor degree from Albany Law School in 1972. He went on to serve in various positions in New York State government for over 45 years as a Legislative Counsel and Policy Advisor. He was most proud of his work developing legislation concerning public retiree pension/health benefits, real property taxation, child welfare, social services and Family Court issues. He also worked for several years with the Retired Public Employees Association and was most recently a member of the Guilderland Ethics Committee.

Outside his professional life, Tony and Ann met in Albany while both were attending a NYS summer intern program for college students. They fell in love, married and stayed in the area ever after to build a family and share a happy life together. Tony was a lifelong St Louis Cardinals fan, though in recent years he also proudly heralded his native New York Yankees. He particularly adored sharing his life stories, digging into family genealogy, and providing his decades of both legal and "dad" expertise to his sons and grandchildren. He is no doubt engaged in Heaven in great debate with others, talking up what to watch in Spring training baseball, or challenging himself with some form of trivia.

Tony is survived by his loving wife of 53 years, Ann, and their two sons, Colonel Matthew Cantore and Michael Cantore, PhD, and by Matthew's wife, Brittany, and grandchildren, David, Daniel, Natalie, Evan, and Daphne. He is also survived by in-laws Ray and Fran Bitteker and Jackie Bitteker, and several beloved cousins. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his sister, Sr. Mary Ann Cantore and brother-in-law, Ronald Bitteker.

Visitation will be held Thursday, January 26, 2023, from 3pm to 5:30pm, with a Celebration of life to be held at 5:30pm at New Comer Cremations & Funerals, 343 New Karner Rd, Colonie, NY 12205. Burial will be scheduled in the spring.

Memorials are suggested to BCNY at https://bcny.org/support/donate or locally to Community Caregivers at https://communitycaregivers.org/donate (please annotate "In memory of Anthony Cantore" in the online form's note section).

Click here to view Tony's Service