Carlo Po

CARLO PO

Iowa City

Carlo Po, 92, of Iowa City, passed away Nov. 28, 2014, at Mercy Iowa City under the compassionate care of its hospice unit.

In following Carlo's desires, he gifted his body to the University of Iowa Anatomy Program and also helped others through the gift of donation with the Iowa Lions Eye Bank. A celebration of Carlo's life will take place at a later time.

Memorials in Carlo's name may be made to the Food Bank via the Johnson County Crisis Center.

Online condolences may be sent for his family at www.gayandciha.com.

His remarkable life took him from Borgonovo Val Tidone in northern Italy, where he saw the rise of Mussolini and fought with the Italian resistance. After the war, he left Italy and worked in some of the great hotels in England and Canada. In the 1950s, he went to Jamaica and helped establish Round Hill, where the likes of Noel Coward and Oscar Hammerstein owned villas.

When it was time to raise a family with his first wife, Elsie, he settled in San Francisco and lived there through the Haight Ashbury years and the 1989 earthquake. After his first wife had died, he struck up a conversation on a park bench overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge with Eastern Iowa native Arlene Bader. That conversation led to 23 years of marriage. They moved back to Iowa so they could be closer to family.

He was a gentleman and a gentle man. Manners and grace were important to him. He was passionate about entertaining and cooking. He loved sharing good food and wine, surrounded by family, friends and laughter. He was a charmer and had eyes that sparkled with just a hint of mischievousness. He particularly enjoyed the delight and surprise he caused when taking a woman's hand and kissing it. He could also be a bit of a stage ham, and his roles included Batman at his son's sixth birthday party, as well as a guard in a Cedar Rapids Opera production of "Tosca."

He will be greatly missed by his wife, Arlene; his son, Tyrone (life partner, Thomas Cahill); his stepdaughter, Tamra Garman (husband, David), and their children, Jakob, David and Emma Garman; and stepdaughter, Julianna Collins, and her children, Lauren, Grace and Amber Collins. His extended family in Milan, Italy, includes his niece, Lalla Bonifacio (husband, Cecco); his nephew, Angelo Barberi; grandnieces, Cristiana Bonifacio and Suzanna Barberi; and great-grandniece, Vittoria Bonifacio.

Carlo's family would like to thank Dr. Sarin and the nurses at Mercy Iowa City and those of Mercy Hospice for their compassionate care.