Letter from Jim Sciutto I know that many others knew Anton more recently and for more time than I did. But twenty years after Anton and I played, laughed, wrestled, and karate-chopped our way through Frostwood Elementary School in Houston, I still have the sharpest memories of him. I remember him mostly in his white, Kung Fu outfit. I think he wore it even when he didn't have any classes. It was his uniform. The picture of him on the website with his first trophy in 1978 is exactly how I picture Anton. He giggled all the time then - - and couldn't help but run around incessantly. I vaguely recall his parents trying to make him sit still occasionally when I came over to play. I cannot recall them ever having any success. I remember him as the most well-traveled third-grader, probably on the planet. He laughed when he told me how his father pushed him onto the floor of their car when they heard gunshots somewhere in the Mid-East. The wide world that seemed so strange to me then, was already familiar to my eight-year-old friend. Like Anton, I ended up living overseas and traveling constantly. I'm sure that Anton and I would have gotten along swimmingly today if I had had the chance. Reading about Anton on the website and speaking with his father gave me more than ample evidence that Anton grew up to be a superb, extremely special person. Only someone that special could inspire the thoughts and emotions expressed in all those letters and anecdotes. What an inspiration! My very best to Anton's family and friends. I will never forget the guy.
Jim Sciutto |