Ante Predovan
Obituary Reports the death of an individual, providing an account of the person’s life including their achievements, any controversies in which they were involved, and reminiscences by people who knew them.
If the legend is to be believed, in the late 1960s a 16-year-old Ante “Tony” Predovan was sent out into the world with nothing but the shirt on his back and a whole leg of prsut (Croatian cured ham) slung over his shoulder on a rope. He left behind his parents’ small sheep farm and likely limited prospects in communist Yugoslavia. He crossed an ocean, settled in a new land and over the next 50 years built a life for himself that would have been nearly impossible to imagine in the single-room farmhouse he grew up in.
He was blessed with other gifts that served him well along the way. With a herculean (and perhaps at times stubborn) work ethic, he forged his own successful construction business. He used his folksy but undeniable charm to woo a devoted clientele and a beautiful young woman, Ann Cucurullo. They wed in 1980, forming a loving partnership that would last the rest of his life.
With his own bare hands of steel, he built the house in Hawthorne, where together they made a home for their five children and at various times their spouses, four grandchildren and many other relatives. It burst with loved ones on Christmas, Thanksgiving and countless Cucurullo clan birthdays, where with his warm smile, Tony surveyed everything from the head of the dining room table. An endless Italian feast laid out for all by Ann and her sisters, giving way to Crazy Eights or Po-Ke-No or LCR for the real gamblers – and a well-earned nap on the couch for Tata.
He was born on June 5, 1951, and departed this life surrounded by his family on Nov. 21. He is survived by his wife Ann and children and their spouses John (Rebecca), Mary Brady (Dan), Anna Gavin (Brian), Ante Jr. (Lauren) and Michael. Also surviving their Dido are his true favorites, grandchildren Brian Brady, Eleanor Brady, Naomi Predovan and William Predovan, who wish him laku noc (good night) in heaven. Tony is also survived by his brothers, Josip, Marijan and Ivo, and a large extended family of in-laws, whose homes, nearly every one, he improved at some point or other and for whom Easter will never be the same.
The family received friends at Beecher Flooks Funeral Home in Pleasantville on Nov. 23 from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Nov. 24 at 10 a.m. at Holy Rosary Church in Hawthorne. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Examiner Media – Keeping you informed with professionally-reported local news, features, and sports coverage.
