Tony Duchi

My great friend Tony Duchi passed away this morning, a few minutes after 8:00. Tony was family to me and the loss will be very hard to take.

Anthony Leo Duchi Jr. was a longtime Fallbrook resident who had lived with and fought off leukemia for the last 15 or so years. Unfortunately his chronic lymphocytic leukemia morphed into lymphoma a few months ago and things started breaking down fast for him. He had something called a 17p deletion in his chromosomes which is apparently very bad news.

Tony was a stand up guy who treated me like his son. He showed my wife Leslie the same unconditional love. We were on opposite sides of the political spectrum but he always was respectful. We agreed to disagree. He always had time for me. Tony didn't own a television. He had a clear idea of what he liked and didn't like and lived life on his own terms. He loved to travel and to sail the open sea. He really enjoyed hearing jazz and music at my parties. We judged the Fallbrook Car Show together in May. And I will never forget him manning the wheel on our whale watching trip and the security everyone felt being guided by his steady hand.

Tony loved his family and his friends, of which he had many. He was justifiably proud of his kids. He supported me and visited me in the hospital when I was ill. He suffered the greatest loss of his life when his late wife Liz died several years ago. He could never replace her.

He loved boats, cats and clocks and cars, food and antiques. And his friends. He was a person who didn't suffer fools gladly. But when you were in, you were in. He was solid gold. Everyone at the coffee shop would brighten up in his presence when he would pay the regulars an occasional visit in the morning.

Tony leaves four grown children, Tony the third and wife Sharon, Lisa and husband Jeff, Julie and Carlo and John along with all of their respective children. They rallied around him in his last days and did everything they could for him. His friend Dick flew out from Massachusetts and spent time with him when things started to go south. Tony built a very successful manufacturing business with his children and was a brilliant mechanical mind. His passing will leave a huge hole in many of our lives. He was truly one of a kind.

Please raise a glass of something red and preferably italian to my wonderful friend.

There will be a Memorial Service and Celebration of his Life on September 5th at 3:30 p.m. at the Ocean House, 300 Carlsbad Village Drive, Carlsbad, Calif. (760) 729-4131. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Tony's name to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. (888) 773-9958.