Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Ventura MBA ’70 died on December 19th, 2020, at the age of 96. Antonio was a distinguished veteran noted as the first American of Filipino ancestry to command an entire battalion. During his early years of active duty, he was a liaison to the Persian government and taught himself to speak and write Farsi. His last assignment was at Santa Clara University, where he educated ROTC cadets. He retired from the U.S. Army after 22 years of service.

Antonio was born in the Philippines and moved with his family to Hawaii as a child. He followed in his father’s footsteps and enlisted in the Army after graduating from the University of Hawaii with a finance degree. He was stationed at military bases around the world and was proud to serve his country. While stationed in Japan, he met and fell in love with Jane Togashi who was there visiting her military brothers. Antonio and Jane raised two sons, Robert and Edward. A passionate tennis player, Antonio competed in tournaments and coached SCU’s tennis team. When Robert and Edward took up racquetball, he became an avid player and entered tournaments with his sons well into his late 60s.