Anthony C. Simboli lived life with passion, determination, resilience and courage. He loved his wife, children and grandchildren, and his work. He enjoyed a competitive tennis match calling the lines closely, with a wink and a smile, a chess match with his grandson, and a vigorous business negotiation.
Most of all, he had a radiant smile that lit up a room, gathered people around him with his humor, humble intelligence, and firmly held opinions offending none. He grew up in the North End, in a five- floor walk- up, which he called the penthouse and believed that life could be shaped by mind over matter. He put this philosophy into action with eternal optimism and a belief that nothing was impossible.
He was privileged to attend Boston College, where he received a B.S. in Chemistry and an M.A. in Philosophy, in the same year, which is still a “college record.” He checked books out of the library rather than buying them; he hitch- hiked or walked from the North End to Chestnut Hill to save the trolley fare, and he studied at nights and weekends while working at a printing factory, with his father, by placing index cards with his notes along the printing presses.
From Boston College, he joined the Central Intelligence Agency. He lived in Washington D.C. but spent the majority of his time in Japan, just after the Korean War. Prior to leaving for Japan, where he lived at the Yakoska Naval Base, he married Gloria, the love of his life, to whom he remained devoted for 69 years.
When he left the CIA, to return to his roots in Boston, he bought a business, a drug store, in Wakefield Center, opening several locations and launching his retail acumen. Following that, he built one of the most well-respected convenience food store businesses in the country. On every major downtown Boston corner – from Harbor Towers to the Jocelyn Clinic and many suburban downtowns, there was a SunnyCorner Farms.
In the 1980’s, he sold the company and turned his attention exclusively to real estate development. His first speculative development was to build a 60,000 s.f. office building in Chelsea, in 1983, the first major building in over 100 years and the first after the great fire of 1974. He is credited with turning around the city, where he and his children developed 14 parcels of land, creating not just a vision but a reality of what was possible in a city where people said commercial development was impossible. His most recent contribution to the city was to relocate the Federal Bureau of Investigation from Boston to Chelsea. The impossible was made possible by his determination, focus, and drive.
He has been a loyal supporter of Boston College and other opportunities to make education accessible and affordable, including the Simboli Family College Award for Chelsea High School graduates, which now numbers more than 150 recipients. He and his wife are committed to medical research and founded a Chair in Asthma Research and established the Asthma Clinical Research Center at the Brigham and Woman’s Hospital; established the Simboli Family Fund for Esophageal Cancer Research at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and supported the Pulmonary Medicine Department at the Mount Auburn Hospital.
He leaves his wife, Gloria, daughter, Patricia Simboli, son, Anthony J. Simboli, his grandchildren A.J., Trevor, and Daisy, and his sister Marie Simboli and brother Edward Simboli. He was predeceased by his younger brother, Patrick.
He loved life, tackled challenges, and relentlessly loved his family. Funeral services will be private. Expressions of sympathy can be made to the Boston College Anthony C. Simboli Scholarship Fund.