Service
Monday, March 28, 2022 |Wake: 9:15 a.m. | Service: 10:15 a.m. |
St John's Church at Interfaith Center | 10431 Twin Rivers Road | Columbia, MD 21044
Live Streaming for the Service can be found at
(The service is in Room 1)
Interment
Private
Obituary
Anthony (“Tony”) Gomez, age 80, peacefully transitioned on Friday, March 18th at Howard County General Hospital after a brief bout with pneumonia, complicated by Parkinson’s disease. He was surrounded by his loving family when he departed this world.
Anthony was born in New Haven, CT to Iris and Germano Gomes, the youngest of seven children, two of whom died in childhood. As the son of parents who immigrated to the U.S. from the West Indies and Cape Verde Islands, he grew up knowing the value of hard work and the importance of family – both became what he was known for in his adult life. Anthony was affectionately nicknamed “Tookie” by his babysitter because that is what he called his favorite treat.
He had a mind for math and extraordinary athleticism. He was the starting point guard for Hillhouse High School’s basketball team, the New England Champions in 1959 and continued playing ball at Quinnipiac College upon graduation. Tony’s talents didn’t stop there. He also loved to dance. Little-known facts: He was an excellent Cha Cha dancer and danced in Billy Fitch’s conga band in New Haven.
Anthony met Maureen (“Mookie”) Gray in middle school. They both attended Hillhouse High School and became a couple in their freshman year. Tony and Maureen were married in 1962 and celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in February 2022. Their love for each other was reflected in their devotion to their three children, nieces, nephews, and all of the children who played on their porch or in their backyard.
Anthony was a caring, generous man with many friends wherever he lived. He proudly belonged to The New Haven Home Boys, a group of men that began their friendship in middle school and continues to this day. Anthony pledged Omega Psi Phi Fraternity in New Haven with several of his childhood friends in 1976. In mid-life, he put down the basketball and picked up tennis with the same passion. His tennis team won the 2004 Super Senior District Championship and he continued to play in, and around, Columbia until he could no longer make it to the court. He considered many of his tennis buddies as his dearest friends.
Anthony earned a Bachelor of Science degree from New Hampshire College in 1978. Subsequently, he received a Master’s in Urban Studies from Occidental College. His business career centered on banking. He was the first African American Branch Manager at the First National Bank of New Haven. In 1978, he was selected to participate in the Urban League’s Urban Fellows Program where he served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for State and Local Finance at the U.S. Treasury Department. He then worked for 20 years as a Senior Program Analyst at the Federal Home Loan Bank Board until his retirement in 2000. Upon retirement, his love of children and service led him to work as a mentor for the Black Student Achievement Program at Running Brook Elementary School for ten years.
Anthony is survived by his wife, Maureen, daughter Janine (Hank), sons Todd (Janis) and Germano, 5 grandchildren – Gabrielle, Khoran, Anna, Jabari and Jackson, his sister Rosemarie Williams, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was predeceased by his sisters Shirley Morgan, Helen Jenkins, and Claudine Gomez, and by his young brothers Paul and Edward Gomes.
Services will be held on March 28, 2022, at St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church in the Interfaith Center in Columbia. Viewing will take place from 9:30-10:15 a.m. followed by funeral services from 10:15-11:15 a.m. A streaming option is available. Contact Howell Funeral Home to receive the link.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation of the National Capital Area – pfnca.parkinsonfoundation.org.
