OBITUARY : Councilman William Tarozzi

West Covina City Councilman William Tarozzi died Tuesday in Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina of complications after pancreatic surgery.

“We are all stunned and deeply saddened by the untimely death of council member Bill Tarozzi, whose forthright style of leadership and friendly sense of humor were a hallmark of City Council meetings during his tenure,” City Manager Jim Starbird said.

The remaining four council members will decide at Tuesday’s meeting whether to appoint someone to fill the vacancy or leave the seat open until the April 14 election, when Tarozzi would have been up for reelection.

Born in Bridgeton, N.J., Tarozzi, 58, was a Navy veteran of the Korean War who had lived in West Covina since 1963. He was elected to the council in April, 1988, and was mayor in 1990.

He was a past owner of Perino’s Liquor Store, belonged to the West Covina Rotary Club and was active in numerous Republican groups.

Survivors include his wife, Dorothy, two daughters, Lori Gomez and Susan O’Cain, a son, Bill, and six grandchildren, all of West Covina. Also surviving are his mother, Mary Tarozzi of Palm Springs, and a sister, Antoinette Vari of La Mirada.

Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Martha’s Episcopal Church in West Covina, followed by burial at Forest Lawn Memorial-Park, Covina Hills.