Thomas Joseph DaPrato
March 27, 1921 ~ September 11, 2010
Resided in:
Asheville, NC
Asheville – Thomas Joseph DaPrato, 89, died Saturday, September 11, 2010 at the Laurels of Green Tree Ridge.
Tom was born March 27, 1921 in Manhattan, NY to Peter and Anna Ghini DaPrato. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Jeanette DaPrato who died in 1988, a sister, Dorothy and by a half-brother, John.
He was a 1942 graduate of St. John's University in Brooklyn and entered the Army Air Corp in September 1942. Tom was a WWII B24 pilot with the 450th Bomb Group. (The Cottontails) He was stationed and flew 31 combat missions out of Manduria, Italy. He was a retired employee of Empire Photo and Lithography in New York City and was a member of St. Barnabas Catholic Church.
Surviving are his wife, Eleanor Benedict DaPrato, three sons, Peter DaPrato and his wife Jane, Thomas DaPrato and his wife Kathy and Anthony DaPrato, a daughter, Suzanne Schwartz and her husband, Robert and a step-daughter, Cathy Benedict Babb and her husband, Don. Tom is also survived by six grandchildren, Dillon and Dean DaPrato, Samantha and Alyson Schwartz, Thomas and Gabrella DaPrato and a step-granddaughter, Erin Babb.
A funeral mass will be said 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, September 14, 2010 at St. Barnabas Catholic Church with Father Adrian Porras officiating. Burial will be at Rose Hill Memorial Park in Putnam Valley, NY.
The family will receive friends from 7:00-9:00 p.m. Monday at Groce Funeral Home at Lake Julian. A rosary will be said at 7:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to St. Barnabas Catholic Church 109 Crescent Hill Drive Arden, N.C. 28704.
View current weather.
Memories Timeline
Guestbook
Sign the Guestbook, Light a Candle
I feel honored to have had the opportunity to spend time with Tom last year. In spite of his health challenges, he was always a gentleman. As his strength returned, he opened up and shared his life story with me. Tom was a delight to work with. I’ll remember him fondly.