Amedeo Lucchesi, 102, Tacoma Businessman

Grace and determination ran through Amedeo Lucchesi's life like a funicular through Italian Alps.

He was determined to escape a German prison camp in World War I; determined after the war to bring his bride to the United States; and determined to earn enough to retire early in a warm climate.

This along with his Catholic faith took him from modest beginnings in Italy to the offices of his own successful beverage-distribution business in the Pacific Northwest.

Not that he was all work. He got a kick out of fishing, bowling, telling tales and traveling.

"His main thing in life was moderation," said his daughter, Lia

Lucchesi Mori of Tacoma. "He never drank too much, smoked too much or did anything too much."

Mr. Lucchesi died last Friday (April 11) of complications from injuries suffered in an automobile accident. He was 102.

Born to a farm family in Florence, Italy, he served in the Italian Army in World War I but was captured and sent to a German prisoner-of-war camp. He escaped, and lived with a couple in Yugoslavia until the 1918 armistice allowed his return to Italy.

Finding jobs scarce after the war, he emigrated to the United States, where his brother helped him get work. Mr. Lucchesi saved enough to return to Italy and bring his wife to Tacoma, where they opened Marconi Italian Grocery. When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, he sold out to pay debts; he had extended credit to many customers who couldn't repay him.

Then he began General Beverage Distributing, running the beer, wine and soft-drink supply firm until he bought retirement property in Phoenix in 1950.

"He worked very hard and delivered to taverns and restaurants all over the Tacoma area," said Mori. "He even drove up to Mount Rainier to deliver to Paradise Lodge - wherever they could get customers. He used to drive his truck all the way to Seattle to pick up beer to save 25 cents a case."

Mr. Lucchesi briefly ran a distributorship in Arizona.

He returned to the Northwest in 1989 to be with his daughter and her three children. He also has two great-grandchildren. His wife of 49 years, Lina Lucchesi, died in 1971. A funeral Mass has been held.