TRIBUTE TO PRESIDENT SAM

(This tribute to our first club president appeared in the August 18th issue of The (Alton) Telegraph)
Civic leader Sam Zangori dead at 86
By CYNTHIA M. ELLIS The Telegraph
WOOD RIVER - Sam Zangori lived a life filled with love, respect and admiration from those who knew him. The prominent 86-year-old businessman and civic leader died Monday at Alton Memorial Hospital after losing a battle to cancer. "Sam was one of the few people I've ever known that no one ever had anything bad to say about him," Wood River Mayor Fred Ufert said. Zangori was a gentle and kind man who found it easy to talk with politicians, as well as paupers. He was a man who loved his town and spent his entire life serving the community. He also was a man with a great sense of humor. He needed it, too. Zangori's height - or lack of it - caught the attention of a lot of people. However, it was the personality and heart of the nearly 5-foot-tall man that made him a giant. Zangori once said in an interview with The Telegraph that he was razzed and kidded with every "short" joke ever told - but he loved it. "I always say, 'If they rolled me out, I would be six feet high,'" Zangori said. Jim Simonds of Bethalto, a friend and former co-worker of Zangori, said he would miss the man who was good at making people laugh. "I know that when he passed, he went straight to heaven," Simonds said. "He was a wonderful person and was someone who went out of his way to help people." Simonds said that the expression "salt of the earth" best described his friend. He said he was a man who was humble and lacked pretension. Simonds worked with Zangori at the Madison County Courthouse in Edwardsville for more than 10 years. Zangori worked as a deputy circuit clerk from 1990 until 2001. "I broke him in on his first trial," said Simonds, who at one time worked as a clerk and now is a bailiff. He said that everyone around the courthouse knew Zangori and his infectious personality. "He was always so upbeat," Simonds said. "He was one of the most pleasant people I knew. A judge one time said that Sam was one of the greatest ambassadors the courthouse had." Before working at the courthouse, Zangori worked for 31 years as an insurance salesman with Metropolitan Life Insurance before retiring in 1995. He also served 14 years on the Roxana School Board from 1968 to 1981. Zangori became the first president of the East Alton Rotary Club in 1971, following the disbanding of the Roxana Rotary Club. He also was a charter member of the Wood River Knights of Columbus. Most recently, Zangori served as president of the Wood River Senior Citizens organization and also the East Alton-Wood River High School Hall of Fame Selection Committee. John Pearson, superintendent of the East-Alton Wood River High School District, said that when Zangori was asked earlier this year to serve on the Hall of Fame committee, he was enthusiastic, to say the least. "He was tickled to be a part of it," Pearson said. "Sam was a real energetic person and contributed greatly to the panel. He really was a joy to be around." Ufert said Zangori was a man always willing to lend a helping hand. "He would do what he could to help a friend, neighbor or a complete stranger," Ufert said. Zangori leaves behind his wife of 62 years, Sarah, and their three children - Mary Ann Kelly, Josephine Tardino and Michael Zangori - along with seven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.