Guido Capponi

CAPPONI, GUIDO, professor, friend, philosopher, writer, carpenter, cook, gardener, artist, father, and a card carrying curmudgeon, died on October 20; he would have been 87. Guido was born October 22, 1919 in Kenosha Wisconsin. He was a lieutenant in the United States Navy and served in the Pacific during World War II. A Fulbright scholar, he received his degrees from the University of Wisconsin, a doctorate in Italian Literature and the Humanities, a Masters in Italian. He married Wilfrida Bowen, taught high school in Illinois and moved to Tucson in 1960. He developed the Italian Department at the University of Arizona and was innovative in his approach to teaching. In the early stages of the Peace Corps, he contributed to the development of teaching foreign languages. He formulated programs which established the teaching of languages to children. He taught Humanities, Italian literature, French, and Spanish. He was also an involved community member and an activist in many different organizations. He gave us counsel, he made us laugh, he made us reflect, and he was our rock. We thought he would always be at the kitchen table to solve our problems, provoke discussion, and help us keep the faith in all things important. His letters and words to the editor, to politicians, to Boards of Directors, letters written on behalf of those who needed help, letters written to us during times of crisis, to thank us, to chide us, to motivate us, and of course, his famous Christmas letter will be missed. His words, advice, predictions, and humor will always be in our ears and in our hearts to be brought forward in our time of need. His beloved wife Wilfrida of 50 years, died in 1998. He is survived by his daughter Rita Capponi-Diskin, son-in-law John Diskin, sister-in-law Sr. Rose Bowen, companion and friend Charlotte Kaye, and many good friends. A funeral mass will be held at St. Frances Cabrini Church, 3201 E. Presidio Rd, on Friday October 27th, at 4:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Department of Medicine at the University Medical Center, for use in training medical residents in the humanities.