Tony Picciuto, known for making crosses, to celebrate 101st birthday

GIBSONBURG - For over a century, Tony Picciuto has quietly been building a legacy. As a veteran, father, volunteer and cross maker, Tony has impacted countless lives since he was born on July 28, 1922.

The centenarian, who is Sandusky County’s oldest living World War II veteran, first started building a legacy after ignoring a loophole that would have kept him out of the war. During the enlistment process for draftees, it was discovered that Tony’s 110-pound frame was right at the disqualifying weight limit, giving him the freedom to walk away and go home. He chose to join the Army anyway and was eventually sent to an air base on the edge of a Guam jungle where Japanese soldiers in hiding were an ever-present danger.

Veteran began making crosses at age 88

Tony survived the war and returned home, but it wasn’t the last time his impact would reach across the ocean. At the age of 88, Tony started making pocketsize wooden crosses that he has gifted to people around the world. For 12 years, Tony made multiple trips to his garage each week to cut, sand and stain crosses. He gave them to friends and family, passed them out to schoolchildren and first responders, mailed them to clergy in other countries, and placed them into the hands of anyone he met. Last year, 250 crosses were placed in Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes and sent around the world.

“I made 32,700 crosses. They’ve gone to at least 35 countries,” Tony said. “I used to keep track of who I gave them to, but at 30,000, I stopped writing them down.”

When asked how he feels about the impact he made with his crosses, he responds with the humility that defines him.

“Well, I feel good when someone tells me that it’s helped them or their health has improved,” he said. “Making crosses kept me alive. I would not have lived this long if I didn’t make crosses.”

Tony’s love may have reached around the world, but it started right at home. He and his late wife, Martha, who died 35 years ago, raised five children in the same Gibsonburg home where he still lives. Today, he has 12 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild, baby Vera Picciuto who was born in May. Shortly after her birth, five generations of Picciutos gathered for a photo.

Tony’s daughter, Tina Picciuto, said she learned much from her father.

“It’s hard to narrow that down to one thing. Work hard, be kind to others, and family is everything,” she said.  “He is very proud of his family.”

A kind and benevolent temperament

Tony’s son and daughter-in-law, John and Lana Picciuto, said Tony’s kind and benevolent temperament attributed to his long and happy life.

“He always told us to live and let live and don’t hold a grudge,” John said.

Lana said Tony has always had a good outlook.

“That’s the most important thing, his positive attitude. He is always looking for the good,” Lana said.

Tony said one of the biggest factors affecting his longevity is his motto, “Keep moving.”

“I even put that on a hat,” he said.

Tony isn’t kidding about staying active. Not only did he start making crosses at age 88, but he made his first hole-in-one on the golf course at age 79 and his second at age 86. For 20 years after his wife died, he volunteered at Williams Park, where he helped mount art sculptures and install 1,200 plaques on the Gibsonburg Veterans Memorial.

“You have to keep moving. I didn’t want to sit down because I wouldn’t have lasted this long,” Tony said. “You have to have a little purpose in life.”

Contact correspondent Sheri Trusty at  sheritrusty4@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Local cross-maker Tony Picciuto to celebrate 101st birthday