Rocco J. Barbuto, Lt. Col. Infantry U.S. Army Ret. January 17, 2011 at age 89. Beloved husband of the late Dorothea (Flynn) Barbuto. Devoted and cherished father of Rocco Barbuto, Jr. and his wife Christine of Hatfield, Carol Ann Dyer and her husband William of Bedford, NH, Jane Barbuto Brenner and her husband Stephen of Winchester, Ann Marie Walsh and her husband Daniel of Weymouth, Diane Lanzillo and her husband Jeffrey of Stoneham and the late Raymond Barbuto. Loving grandfather of 11 and great grandfather of 6. Dear brother of Rose Sciuto and her late husband Sebastian of Wilmington and the late Pasquale “Pat” Barbuto. Dearest friend of Stella “Dolly” McCormack of Allston.
He attended Brighton High School prior to joining the Civilian Conservation Corp which was run by the US Army. Col. Barbuto’s military service began when he enlisted as a private with the Massachusetts 26th Infantry Division. Shortly after the war began he was sent to Officer Candidate School and graduated as a 2nd lieutenant, assigned to the 5th Infantry Division, becoming a member of Patton’s famed Third Army. He was engaged in five major campaigns, including the Battle of the Bulge. In 1951, Col. Barbuto was deployed to Korea and saw action in three major campaigns against the Chinese and North Koreans, including fierce fighting in the “Punch Bowl”. Among his military awards are two Bronze Stars, Purple Heart, two Army commendation medals, the Combat Infantry Badge with silver stars and many campaign medals and presidential unit citations. Col. Barbuto retired in 1966 as Operations Officer at Fort Drum, New York. After 26 years of service to his country, Col. Barbuto returned to Allston with his family and worked for Raytheon Corporation in Waltham and C.S. Draper Laboratory in Cambridge, as a safety engineer, establishing many new safety and environmental procedures. He was a communicant of St. Patrick Parish in Stoneham, a former member of the Knights of Columbus, an avid Red Sox fan, and enjoyed spending winters in Vero Beach, Florida with his beloved wife of 55 years.
Funeral from the Barile Family Funeral Home, 482 Main St. (RT 28) STONEHAM Monday at 8 am followed by a Funeral Mass celebrating Rocco’s Eternal Life in St. Patrick Church, 71 Central St. Stoneham at 9 am. Family and friends are cordially invited to gather and share remembrances with the Family on Sunday from 1-6 pm in the Funeral Home. Parking attendants will be available. Interment with Military Honors at Mt. Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge.
Please honor Rocco by making donations in memory of him to Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, 200 Springs Rd. Bedford, MA 01730.