Anthony “Tony” Filippis Sr. Dies at 91

Anthony "Tony" Filippis Sr., a nationally known and beloved icon in the movement to improve the lives of persons with disabilities, passed away Tuesday, January 23, at the age of 91, Wright & Filippis announced shortly after his death.

Wright & Filippis Inc., headquartered in Rochester Hills, Michigan, is the Great Lakes State's largest provider of home healthcare products and services. Filippis, the company's founder, dedicated his personal and professional life to assisting persons with disabilities. And while he officially retired from the company in 1995, Filippis maintained an office until the time of his death to continue his significant philanthropic efforts.

Filippis experienced first-hand the frustration and heartache frequently confronted by persons with disabilities when he lost both of his legs below the knee in a train accident at the age of 13. The disappointments and discrimination he faced fueled Filippis' passion for making a difference in the lives of others, including his founding of the Athletes with Disabilities Hall of Fame in 1999.

Filippis had been feeling ill in recent days and had been admitted to Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital to undergo tests. He passed away shortly after midnight.

Born September 13, 1915, Filippis is survived by his wife, Frances, a daughter, Nancy (Hakala), and a son, Anthony J. "A.J.", currently president and CEO of Wright & Filippis. He was preceded in death by his oldest son, Eugene, who lost his battle with cancer in 1997. He is also survived by 14 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren.

The story behind Anthony Filippis Sr.'s incredible journey from a poor Depression-era youngster to a respected businessman and advocate for the disabled community dates back to April 29, 1929. That is the day 13-year-old Tony wandered away from the safety of his family's Detroit home, tempted fate, and forever altered the course of history for generations of disabled citizens.

"Some neighborhood kids came by and talked me into going swimming," Filippis once recalled. "We hopped the train near Louisiana and Brush to ride to the swimming hole at Seven Mile, but the train was moving too fast to jump off.

"We ended up near Nine Mile and Hilton in Ferndale, when suddenly the train jerked, and I fell and grabbed the coupling as my feet slapped the tracks. I climbed back up and someone yelled, 'Look! Your feet!' They were mangled beyond recognition--and later they had to be amputated below the knees."

Those nightmarish moments changed his life forever. Depressed, but not defeated, Filippis would later learn to make the artificial limbs that would carry him to prominence as an admired member of the business community, and to an even greater presence as a respected voice for the disabled.

"I was like any other kid," Filippis said. "I loved sports--I lived sports. I slept at night with a baseball. Sports was always going to be an important part of my life, and as I got older, it was going to be a way for me to reach out to people who needed a break. These people--myself included--needed to be active."

While his keen business savvy and eye for detail helped build Wright & Filippis into one the nation's most successful private medical enterprises, Filippis' enthusiastic support for the rights of the disabled was arguably unrivaled. And the passion for this cause was learned at an early age.

"Things were different in those days. I hired in at a lot of places, but when they found out I had artificial legs, they fired me," Filippis said. "I got a job in a tailor shop because I was good at sewing. The owner came by one day and asked why I was limping. I tried to play it down, but he persisted until I finally told him I had artificial legs. He fired me on the spot."

Filippis took his anger and frustration to Carl Wright, a friend who worked at Martin-Halstead Co., and who had made Filippis' prostheses. When Filippis asked Wright for an adjustment, Wright knew something was wrong.

Filippis explained: "I told him, 'I'm branded as a cripple. I can't get a job anyplace. They hire me, and when they find out about my legs, they fire me.'"

Wright did something that would forever impact Filippis' destiny--he offered him a job as an apprentice. Filippis worked with Carl Wright for ten years before they formed their own company--Wright & Filippis.

From those beginnings, Wright & Filippis has grown to what is now one of the only companies in the United States that offers the complete spectrum of services for the disabled. That small shop in Detroit has blossomed into more than 30 facilities throughout Michigan and the Midwest.

"We started the business in 1944," Filippis said. "We worked hard, and it grew and grew. That's because we had good people here, good people who cared about people, and we always put the customer first. We just tried to help. We've always felt we could help anyone, and there are a lot of people who need it."

Filippis used the success he enjoyed in the business world to blaze a trail for Michigan's disabled athletes. In 1946, he formed the first bowling league for the disabled, and later that same year, established a swimming program for the disabled at Detroit's Patton Pool. It wasn't long before he developed a variety of other sports programs for both able-bodied and disabled athletes, including basketball, baseball, softball, golf, tennis, boxing (he trained as many as 22 amateur fighters at one time), and track and field.

Filippis himself participated in every one of these sports. As an example of his own athletic prowess, he captured gold medals in the shot put, javelin, discus, and baseball throw in the Michigan Wheelchair Athletic Association Regional Games--a spectacular feat considering the then-82-year-old Filippis competed in an open division against athletes of all ages. He did, in fact, establish state records in all four events and qualified for the national games.

His further contributions to athletic and recreational activities were also impressive. For more than 25 years, Wright & Filippis has hosted "Wheelchair Daze," a free picnic which annually welcomes more than 1,200 persons with disabilities and their guests. At his direction, Wright & Filippis served as the official sponsor of the Detroit Free Press Marathon Disabilities Division for more than 20 years. And the Gene Filippis Memorial Golf Benefit raises more than $50,000 each year for a variety of community nonprofit organizations.

More recently, Filippis made sports history in 1999 when he founded the Athletes with Disabilities Hall of Fame. The mission of the Hall of Fame is to honor Michigan's athletes with disabilities who have demonstrated achievement in sports and are positive role models in the community as well as to educate the public about the capabilities of individuals with disabilities. This unique nonprofit organization also strives to provide support for recreational and educational programs for persons with disabilities.

The Hall of Fame now supports and serves as the linchpin for the newly formed Adaptive Sports Coalition, an alliance of more than 20 locally based groups that provide various recreational opportunities for persons with disabilities. The influence and impact of the Hall of Fame continues to grow in the community by focusing on education, awareness, and scholarship programs.

Filippis' dream of an organization that directly impacts the lives of persons with disabilities continues to fuel the Hall of Fame's progress. The Hall of Fame recently developed a mentoring program in which its alumni visit classrooms and deliver motivational speeches to students throughout the state. The Hall of Fame has also established a scholarship endowment to benefit young athletes with disabilities as well as those children who aspire to careers that will benefit the disabled community.

Filippis' hard work and vision have brought hope to thousands of disabled persons, nurturing belief and fulfilling dreams.

"Each generation is better offthan the last," Filippis recently said, "and it's our job to see to it that we make this world a better place for everyone."

The family asks that memorial contributions be made to the Athletes with Disabilities Hall of Fame, c/o Wright & Filippis, 2845 Crooks Road, Rochester Hills, MI 48309.

Anthony “Tony” Filippis Sr. Dies at 91

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