Pullara on August 27,1926 in a shotgun house on 9th Ave, Ybor City. His sister Sarah came
along one year later. Andrew and Teresa were immigrants from Sicily who had met in an Ybor
cigar factory.
Peter grew up in Ybor, and was known to be feisty from day one. Early on, he showed a knack
for the violin. He played in the orchestra at Hillsborough High School, and graduated early in
1945, drafted to serve in the U.S. Army in WW 2, where he served honorably in the Philippines.
After he returned home, he enrolled in the University of Tampa for a Business degree. After one
semester, he realized that Statistics was not for him. Casting about for a different field of study,
he found out they needed violin students for the orchestra at Florida Southern College.
He transferred there and was rehearsing in the orchestra when a beautiful woman walked in
carrying a violin case. The conductor seated her next to Pete. According to him, she tossed her
long blond hair, and said “My name’s Harriett. I need to borrow your rosin.”
He was instantly smitten, and they married in 1950. They moved in 1955 from Lakeland to
Tampa, where he and Harriett taught for many years in the Hillsborough County schools, adding
master’s degrees during that time.
He lost his beloved Harriett in 2014, and his only granddaughter Heather in 2015. He is
predeceased also by his sister Sarah. He is survived by his two daughters Teresa and Mary, 4
grandchildren Peter, David, Michael and Zell, and 14 great-grandchildren. He was famous for
his amazing cooking, especially his lasagna. He also loved classical music, and beautifying his
yard. He loved cars and he was quite a storyteller.
We will miss his crazy sense of humor and his over-the-top imagination. And we always knew
he was crazy about us, his family and loved ones.
Partager l'avis de décès
v.1.9.5