It is with great sadness that the Holy Name High School Community announces the passing of Tony Ferrante, Class of 1949. An obituary with calling hours and funeral information for Mr. Ferrante can be found at http://bit.ly/1R3AEP2.
Mr. Ferrante loved Holy Name, and was a proud alumnus. During his time as a student, he played football, and was a sophomore on the 1946 Holy Name team that played in front of more than 70,000 people during the Charity Game versus Cathedral Latin at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Although Holy Name lost that game, Mr. Ferrante played a large role in the team’s success the following year, as the Little Davids beat Cathedral Latin, 14-7 in the 1947 Charity Game.
Following his time at Holy Name, Mr. Ferrante attended John Carroll University on a football scholarship. While there, he met his wife, Josephine, and they married between his junior and senior years of college. After graduating from JCU, Mr. Ferrante served in the United States Army’s medical corps stateside, helping wounded Korean War soldiers who returned to the United States for treatment.
His professional career began at Bobbie Brooks Clothing Co., a women’s apparel company, where he managed their distribution and became president of Brooks Transportation. Eventually, he purchased Kaplan Trucking, a business that continues to be owned and operated by the Ferrante family. In addition to Kaplan Trucking, Mr. Ferrante started Horizon Freight System, and over the years acquired Eastern Express, TRX, DD&S Express trucking companies.
A highly successful businessman and devoted family man, Mr. Ferrante will be forever remembered for his generosity to Holy Name High School. Together with his wife Josephine, Mr. Ferrante made significant contributions to the school’s renovated Library Media Center, which is named in honor of him and his wife.
He also was a major supporter of Holy Name’s initiative to renovate all of the science labs, helping to make the Medical Mutual Patton Physics Lab a success and the future Ferrante Chemistry Lab a growing reality. Additionally, Mr. Ferrante’s donation toward removing old windows and installing new ones throughout the school building has led to lower heating costs, and made the school more energy efficient overall.
The legacy of Mr. Ferrante will continue on through the significant improvements he has helped to make to the school building, as well as through the Ferrante Scholarships that are given to well-deserving Holy Name students each year.
Holy Name Principal Shelbrey Blanc ’95 said, “I first met Mr. Ferrante at the Library Media Center dedication in 2012. From the moment I met him, I could tell he had a great love and passion for Holy Name. He was such a nice, generous, and humble man, and I am grateful for all of his support. I will miss him, but know his legacy will live on through the current and future students who will benefit from his generosity.”
Mr. Ferrante is survived by his wife, Josephine, his son David (fiancée Sara Doran), and his daughters, Nanci Westrick (Dave) and Suzanne Ferrante, as well as three grandchildren, four great-grandchildren, three sisters, and many nieces and nephews.
We ask that the entire Holy Name Community prays for the Ferrante Family, and may we always remember Tony Ferrante as a loyal, compassionate, kind, humble, and giving Namer.