Thomas I Balestrieri

May 27, 1948 - December 5, 2022

Thomas (Tom) Balestrieri passed away peacefully at his home in Lafayette, CA with his family by his side. He fought a courageous yearlong battle with metastatic esophageal cancer.

Tom was born in San Francisco in 1948 to Gaeton (Tommy) and Teresa (Terry) Balestrieri. He was proud to have grown up in the Marina District and to be part of the “Marina Boys,” where he made many longtime friends. He and his older brother Frank attended St Vincent de Paul Grammar School and St. Ignatius High School. Tom strongly identified with his Sicilian heritage from his dad and his Spanish Basque heritage from his mom. His family affectionately called him “pasta e fagioli” which translates to pasta and beans. He had many cousins in San Francisco that spent a lot of time together growing up. Tom and his cousins worked at his father’s fish company at Fisherman’s Wharf along with several other familyowned restaurants. Tom’s large extended Italian family continues to gather for holidays and special occasions. Tom will be missed by his brother Frank Balestrieri of Belmont and his many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Tom attended college at Santa Clara University where he became a very proud Bronco from the class of 1970. He formed a core group of friends who have remained close for over 50 years. Many of his friends met and married their wives at Santa Clara and started their families shortly after graduation. This group of friends has taken many family vacations together including Lake Tahoe and golf trips to La Quinta. Tom also enjoyed several trips to Europe, Mexico, and Hawaii with his family and friends. His most memorable trips were with his Santa Clara friends on a river cruise down the Danube and a trip to Italy where he visited his grandparent’s birthplace, Sant’Elia, Sicily.

Tom married the love of his life Victoria (Rhinehart) Balestrieri in 1971 who he loved and cherished for 51 years, having just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2021. They had three children - Nicholas Balestrieri (partner Kelly Wolf) and Michael Balestrieri (wife Kerry Grady Balestrieri). Their middle son, Anthony (Tony) Balestrieri predeceased his parents in 2013. Tom was overjoyed when the Grady’s and the Balestrieri’s became family. Michael and Kerry are expecting the first grandchild, a baby boy, due in February 2023.

Tom enjoyed supporting his boys in CYO basketball at St Perpetua (Lafayette), swim team at Orinda Park Pool, and MOL flag football. His support of his boys’ athletics continued through their high school years and the family developed many long-lasting friendships in the community.

Tom was a successful banker at Bank of America where he was a Senior Vice President in Commercial Banking for over 45 years. He valued his relationships with his customers and felt responsible to help them be successful in their individual businesses. The way he talked about his customers and his understanding about their companies showed how much he really cared about them and their well-being. Tom was Banker of the Year at Bank of America in 2004 where he said there was an overwhelming number of balloons and applause when they presented him on stage with the award. He consistently participated in many philanthropic projects and golf tournaments through his sponsorships with Bank of America. He ended his career in banking at US Bank prior to retirement.

Tom was loved dearly by his family and friends. His boys looked up to and admired him greatly. His Bronco friends are like brothers – they claim the party started when “The Bear” showed up. Tom loved to make people laugh and he could banter with the best. He was a very charismatic person that could get to know anyone. Tom was proud of his Jesuit education from St. Ignatius and Santa Clara.

During his retirement, Tom enjoyed spending his free time at Oakwood, his athletic club in Lafayette. Besides spending time with his family, his boys, his greatest passions were football and golf. Tom was a dedicated, lifelong fan of the San Francisco 49ers. Like any proud Italian, he loved The Godfather, The Sopranos, Rocky and preparing Italian meals for his family. Tom’s love for life and his comedic personality will be greatly missed by all who knew him. His family and friends will deeply miss his joyful spirit.

The family is planning a celebration of life for Tom to be held at a later date.

If you wish to donate in Tom’s memory, please make a donation to The American Cancer Society, an Animal Rescue or a charity of your choice.