Anthony R. "Tony" Simons

Anthony R. "Tony" Simons, 71, of Center Valley, passed away Thursday, November 6, 2025, in L.V. Hospital, Cedar Crest. He was the husband of Audrey K. (Buss) Simons. They celebrated their 31st wedding anniversary in September of 2025. Born in Philadelphia, he was the son of the late Stanley W. and Miriam E. (Reinbold) Simons. Tony graduated from Southern Lehigh High School in 1971, received his bachelor's degree in music education from West Chester University in 1975 and his master's degree in music from the University of Illinois in 1981. Tony attended the Peabody Conservatory of Music at Johns Hopkins University from 1987-1990, where he received the Artist Diploma. Prior to years of performing in various instrumental groups along the East coast, Tony spent an adventurous first year of teaching in New Waterford, Nova Scotia. He was then a music teacher in the East Penn School District for 25 years before retiring in 2018. Since 1990, Tony has been a member of the faculty at Muhlenberg College as instructor of clarinet and saxophone. In 1992, Tony met his wife, Audrey, playing in the pit orchestra of West Side Story at DeSales University. While he claimed to pay attention to the conductor, he always said he was secretly "watching her cello bow." Alongside Audrey, he co-directed the Pocono Youth Orchestra in Stroudsburg from 1993-2018. From family and friends to students of old, Tony shaped and inspired the lives of many. He was a member of Christ UCC, Bethlehem. His passion for animals, Philadelphia sports teams, humorous puns, random facts, storytelling, and nature made him the kind of man people could not help but love.

Survivors: Wife, Audrey; Son: Luke E. Simons and his wife Larissa M.L. Simons of Coopersburg and a granddaughter on the way.

Services: 11 am Friday, Heintzelman-Stephens Funeral Home, P.C., 274 N. Krocks Rd., Allentown 18106. Call 10-11 am Friday in the funeral home. www.heintzelmanstephens.com

Contributions: In lieu of flowers to American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 1640, Hagerstown, MD 21741. https://www.cancer.org/donate.html