Anthony Saracino

1958 - 2022

Anthony Saracino
October 17, 1958 - July 27, 2022
Sacramento, California -
Dear family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, and bandmates of Anthony Saracino. Anthony was surrounded by so much love in his life, thanks to all of you. This is a letter to thank you for all you did to make his life rich and fulfilling.
Anthony was a man of many interests. He was an amazingly talented musician who loved playing lead guitar in his band, recording music, and writing songs. I'm surprised he took a shine to me given I couldn't sit still for live music. Despite this shortcoming on my part, we both knew that our meeting was the best thing that ever happened to us. We had 26 wonderful years together.
Anthony had a remarkable career and developed many deep friendships along the way. He was an intelligent, inquisitive, and savvy person who had excellent judgment and business sense. He was a widely-recognized expert in California water policy. He co-authored various publications on groundwater management, reservoir reoperation, and integrating storage in California's changing water system. He was a founding member of the board and past president of the Groundwater Resources Association of California and served on the board of the Water Education Foundation for 15 years. Anthony was appointed in both federal and state courts as a groundwater expert. He was a member of the California Water Commission from 2010 to 2015, having been appointed by both Governors Schwarzenegger and Brown, and served as Chair of the Commission for the first two years of his term. Water was such an important part of Anthony's identity that Carl Hauge pronounced us married on the authority vested in him as the Chief Hydrogeologist of the State of California.
When I first met him, Anthony worked out of a home office above his garage, having been fired from Wallace-Kuhl for disagreeing with the company's vision for their environmental program. He used the opportunity to carry out his own vision himself. One of the first clients who gave him the anchor he needed to build his business was Scott Wolcott, who became one of his dearest friends. Graduating from his home office, Anthony worked with his partner Ken Kirby to build a firm that employed many remarkable people. Tempting Lester Snow to join them for the ride, they were so successful with the business model he designed that Schlumberger Water Services acquired the firm. After being excused by Schlumberger following a disagreement with high-level management in a memorable meeting in Paris, Anthony joined The Nature Conservancy as the Director of the California Water Program, building another talented team there. He transitioned (this time on his own terms) to a successful consulting practice, partnering with Jeff Mount for one chapter of this era.
Anthony was passionate about food, wine, and travel. He was an accomplished chef and I his happy and willing sous chef. We hosted many happy meals for friends and family. We also had exciting travel adventures, including trips to Italy and Australia with Mark and Mary, camping and travel with Leo and Brenda, summers on the lake with Valerie and Byron, drinks on the dock in Washington with Carl and Carol, sailing with Brian and Marlene, adventures in Boulder with Tia and Andrew, hikes with Maurice and Mary, kayaking with Kim and Campbell, long walks and garden dinners with Jennifer, Michael and Shelby, years of New Year's celebrations with Scott and Carmah in exotic places, and so many more. We had so many good times with all of you and were blessed with a remarkable life together, thanks to our wonderful community of friends.
As many of you experienced, Anthony could be stubborn and unrelenting when he thought he was in the right. Once he made up his mind, he was difficult to dissuade from his position because he had such a firm belief in his own reasoning and experience. While this defining quality led to some precipitous job changes for him, Anthony's determination provided tremendous support to me personally and in my career, and to the many, many friends and colleagues he devoted himself to.
Anthony's resolve served him well until the end, when he decided that nothing would save him from the suffering he endured as a long-term insomniac who experienced crippling anxiety, depression, and sleeplessness in the last few months of his life. Despite persistent efforts to find an effective treatment, endless research, many consultations, and serially unsuccessful experiments with prescribed pharmaceuticals, in the end he decided that ending his life was better than continuing to fight a battle he didn't believe he could win.
Anthony leaves so many loved ones behind. His daughter, grandson, and son-in-law. His sister Donna and nieces Samantha and Emily. My family, who adored him. His dear friends, colleagues, bandmates, clients, and co-conspirators. Our loss is a profound and baffling one.
Thank you all for the outpouring of love and support you've given me during this painful time. He would have been so touched and honored. We will be holding a celebration of his life this fall and hope you will all join. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you consider a donation to your favorite charity in his name. Love to you all, Nancy.