G. THOMAS RAINONE

RAINONE--G. Thomas.

G. Thomas Rainone, 1930-2015, 84, passed away on January 20th, 2015 at his Catskill Mountain home following a geriatric progression of cognitive decline, with his wife Beverly and son Gregg present. He is survived by his sister Angelina in Queens, NY, her daughters Martha Keenan of Brooklyn, NY, and Grace Monturo of Phoenix, AZ, and their families, and his late sister Josephine's children, Francis Maestoso and Anthony Fiore, now both of Rome, Italy, and their families. Gaetano, or "Tom", as he was known to all, was born to Raffaele and Grace Rainone of Italy on March 25th, 1930 in Brooklyn, NY. He attended grade school in Brooklyn along with his sisters and his brother, Albert, known as "Babe". Both brothers attended New York Military Academy in Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY, where Tom excelled in varsity diving, and was shortstop-captain of the varsity baseball team. Tom was his NYMA alumni class president for several years, having graduated in 1947 while Albert graduated in 1949. The also highly athletic and well- liked Albert died tragically in an automobile accident later that year. Tom accepted considerable family responsibility at a young age following Albert's death, while attending Sienna College near Albany and the family summer residence in Saugerties, NY. As a young man Tom worked as a bowling alley pin setter in Saugerties, being a 200- average bowler, and also as a resort swimming pool lifeguard. Locals of the time might also remember the very fit Tom Rainone in high- diving exhibition off the Route 9 Saugerties bridge and into The Esopus Creek. Tom ultimately studied business at New York University. Tom began working at the family company, Gem Edible Oils, in 1955, and which was founded in 1933 at the low point of The Great Depression. The company was a leader in it's regional industry and perhaps most broadly known in the early 1970's for print ads in TV Guide and major New York area newspapers. The Gem brand is currently part of Sovena Foods of Portugal --Gem always imported top-quality olive oil from the Mediterranean region, and so it was that the brand ultimately "went global". Tom was first married in 1957 to Evelyn Eenberg of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Evelyn was a fashion industry executive. The couple moved to a just-built cooperative apartment building in Greenwich Village in 1960. Tom was also a successful sales executive for Swift Meats during this time and transitional period at Gem Oil. Evelyn passed on very prematurely and tragically in 1967. Tom married his second wife, Beverly Becher of Spokane Washington, in 1972. Beverly was the Corporate Fashion Director for Lane Bryant Stores, and is an avid outdoors woman, alpine skier, and Professional Ski Instructors Association certified ski instructor. Beverly introduced Tom to the sport of alpine skiing at age forty, and he then impressively went on to become a fully certified member of The Professional Ski Instructors of America by age fifty, and then directed the ski school at Highmount Ski Center in The Catskill Mountains for fifteen years. He was also the producer of "A Method To The Madness", a noted ski instructional film of it's time in 1975. Tom was an instrumental figure at Highmount Ski Center in many roles and projects. Tom's son, Gregg, attended NCAA Division-I ranked Middlebury College in skiing, and subsequently ski-raced professionally from 1984 thru 1988 when he was ranked as high as 29th in the world as a pro. Tom was very influential in his son's life, and athletic life, and he coached the 8th grade softball team at Brooklyn Friends School in 1976. Following graduation from Rollins College, Tom's son currently resides in the Orlando, Florida area and is engaged in the investment field, following a stint in the golf industry during which time he competed, and passed the playing ability test for The PGA of America. Tom's life was epitomized by a one-of- a-kind combination of always-charismatic and intuitive talents, which were expressed equally well in both the English and Italian languages, along with some French in his later years. He was always a gifted amateur athlete, and never went to the gym a day in his life until it became "prescribed" in later years. Prior to age sixty, Tom could always and easily perform a "one-and-a-half rotation with a half-twist" dive, with no warm-up ever, off any one-meter springboard, and always to the delight of the assembled crowd. They would then always be further entertained, and well into the evening, by "a million" jokes and stories. Tom attracted people in impeccable, trim, three-piece business suit form, Italian leather loafers, and frequently for an always- accommodating LaGuardia or JFK "airport pick-up/drop- off", and always in a latest top of the line automobile. And the ultimate destination was often one of New York's uptown restaurants, or the seventh row-center toughest- ticket-in-town-show on Broadway, or at one of the city's famed sporting venues. Upon the sale of Gem Packing Corp, Tom retired to realty interests in New York, where he maintained his residence in "the city", along with his skiing, tennis, and golf residence and lifestyle in The Catskills. Tom and his wife have also been involved in a number of local civic activities with neighbors and friends in the Catskills. In recent years Tom would also annually visit his son, several long-time friends, and also NYMA classmates in Florida during the wintertime. A visitation and memorial gathering will be held at Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel, 1076 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10028 on Saturday, January 31st, 2015, with the family receiving from the hours of 12:00 noon until 2:00 pm, and a private family luncheon to follow. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to: New York Military Academy, 78 Academy Avenue, Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY, 12520. Hudson Valley Hospice Foundation, 374 Violet Avenue, Poughkeepsie, NY, 12601.