Bill Betz death June, 2021

Bill Betz in 1980, photo from John Phillips

John Brady and Kathleen received an email from John Phillips about the death of Bill Betz, friend and former housemate.

John sent this memory of Bill: Attached is photo of Bill from Nov 1980. He was still in the Air Force, stationed at Carswell AFB in Ft Worth, at that time. I don’t know much about his career after that. Bill and I had taken the AF entrance exam together in South Bend in senior year. The writing was on the wall for both of us and we had decided that life in the AF would probably be cleaner and more civilized than life in the Army.  He started active duty a little behind me – OCS at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, then UPT pilot training at Laredo AFB. I don’t know all his service details, but I do know he was a really fine B-52 pilot/commander during and after the Vietnam conflict, including 2 six month TDY combat tours flying out of Guam. After Vietnam I believe he was stationed at Otis AFB for a while and then came to Carswell AFB. Unfortunately we lost contact with each other about 1982/83, so I was really glad when Rick Gutowski arranged a zoom call for the Meade Street roommates in January this year. Bill had a full beard, but under it was the same Bill from the picture in 1980. 

Richard Calone death May 21, 2021

Richard Salvatore Calone was born in Napa, CA June 22, 1946 to Salvatore and Elaine Calone. He passed away peacefully on May 21, 2021 in Stockton, CA.

Dave Zell wrote: “On May 21, Richard Calone died after a lengthy illness.   He was my roommate for 4 years and a fellow ROTC cadet.  After graduation he attended Santa Clara Law School and became the premier tax attorney in the Stockton, California area.  The funeral Mass is to be on June 22 at the Cathedral in Stockton.  He was a good friend and although we were separated by a thousand miles or so, I miss him.”

Richard’s youth was spent in Pittsburg, CA and upon graduating High School, he went on to attend the University of Norte Dame where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Rich continued his education and went on to earn his Juris Doctorate from Santa Clara School of Law and a Master’s Degree in Taxation from Golden Gate University. He was also a Certified Specialist in Taxation in the state of California and worked as an attorney for the IRS before launching his own law firm, Richard S. Calone, Inc. in 1989.  
During his continued education, Rich was involved in ROTC and served in the Army Reserves as a Tank Captain. He was an avid bird hunter, enjoyed trap and skeet shooting, loved the San Francisco Giants, good food and absolutely CHERISHED the time he spent with his family and friends. He loved life and all its challenges, and will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved him.
Rich is survived by his loving wife Sharon, daughters, Heather Coldani (Troy), Charise DeCoito (Daniel), son Salvatore Calone, step sons, Blake and Eric Alley, brother Robert Calone, sister MaryAnn Ingram and his dogs Buddy and Molly and his cat Elvis.
Those who knew Rich are invited to a Mass at the Annunciation Cathedral in Stockton on Tuesday, June 22nd at 11 am followed by a Celebration of Life at the Stockton Golf and Country Club from noon to 3 pm.  
Donations in honor of Rich Calone should be made to Hospice of San Joaquin  www.hospicesj.org

A co-worker left this description of Rich: “Rich gave me opportunities that fueled my practice. I will always remember the first time that I met him, with Mike Schmidt, in Turlock and he gave me a chance. When the Irish meet the Trojans, I will think of him. FIGHT ON my friend – FIGHT ON!”

John Tilelli death November 4, 2020

November 22, 1946 – November 4, 2020. John Tilelli, who was a roommate of John Schmelzer, graduated from University of Notre Dame in 1968 and University of Chicago in 1970 with a Masters of Science in Physics. He spent 2 years in the United States Health Service with a rank of Health Service Officer (O-4). He was honorably discharged in 1972. In 1976, he graduated with a Doctor of Medicine from University of Utah. John Tilelli held positions of intern, resident, fellow, and chief resident at University of Minnesota Hospital before moving to Florida. From 1987 to 2016, John Tilelli worked as a Pediatric Intensive Care Physician for Arnold Palmer Hospital. 

John Tilelli held board certifications in Pediatrics, Medical Toxicology, Emergency Medicine, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, and Pediatric Emergency Medicine. Throughout his career, he had over 30 publications and numerous presentations. 

John Tilelli is survived by his 6 children, Nicholas, John Jr. Bridget, Maria, Matthew, and Michael. 

Among the reflections friends and family posted was this one, left by one of John’s students: “I was a PICU RN when John came to Orlando in 1983. He was such a rare combination of pure genius, kindness, and compassion. On Monday mornings when he took over as PICU attending, everyone would bring a chair as his evaluation and plan for each patient was comprehensive and thorough. He was never boring and never bored. Is there another person who had as many board certifications as JT had?! Once we had a baffling and very rare case come in, but JT had the diagnosis immediately. When I queried him on where to find information on it, he gave me the name and author of the book which I found in the medical library. In the 4 inch thick volume, the only mention of the illness was in a mere 6 lines. I was in awe of the man, his interests, wisdom and knowledge. I hope the Buddhists are right and JT gets to come back again. The world needs him.”