Donor Spotlight: Tony Pomonis
Celebrating a Life Through the Humanities
It’s a safe bet that for most residents of Champaign-Urbana, the name “Merry-Ann” invokes an immediate association with a local institution: the iconic Merry-Ann’s Diner, which has been a staple of the community for more than 40 years.
Thanks to Tony Pomonis (LAS ’02), whose mother was the real life Merry-Ann, she is also the namesake of a newly created fund supporting volunteer opportunities for humanities students, particularly those with an affinity for writing: the Merry-Ann Pomonis Humanities Fund.
For Tony, the origin of this gift starts with a move. A lifelong resident of the Champaign-Urbana area, he and his family moved to Florida in 2022 as he pursued a new opportunity at the University of Central Florida. In the time leading up to and after the move, amid the red tape of getting a new license, unpacking (and also bracing for Hurricane Ian), he found himself feeling contemplative, reflecting on his roots.
He especially thought about his parents, who were each larger-than-life in their own way: his dad, legendary local restaurateur Anastase “Stacy” Pomonis, who was a seismic force throughout Tony’s life, and the mother he lost when he was only four years old, Merry-Ann. Recognizing the significance of that absence, he felt a growing need to know her better.
Piecing Together the Person
That curiosity led him to boxes of photos and mementos, including handwritten letters from his mother. “I was just struck by what a fantastic writer she was,” he said, noting both her enviable penmanship and evocative style. Through these personal archives, as well as bits of memories shared by friends and family over the years, he could imagine his mother more fully.
One of her college friends, Vern Fein, attests to witnessing the moment she became a feminist. As the story goes, college freshman Merry-Ann was participating in a sorority “auction” of women, but upon seeing signs from protestors she walked off, picked up a placard, and joined them on the spot.
In another memory, Tony recalls his mother taking him to a bakery to order a special Grease-themed birthday cake he desperately wanted, all while weaving stories about the baker’s “magic” to conjure the design. Indeed, she was a gifted storyteller, and she was also a persuasive writer who frequently used her skills to pen letters to the editor, Tony said.
Through these archives and anecdotes, a picture emerged of a tough, smart, and loving mother who, as Tony’s father liked to say, would “brook and harbor no nonsense.”
“In many ways, she was the secret behind my father's success when he was building up his business from scratch in the 1970s,” he said. “They were absolutely a team, and she was participating in all sorts of artistic, creative, PR facets of the business.”
A Gift in the Humanities
Merry-Ann was an English major (as was Tony), and he knew that he wanted to honor that facet of her by establishing a gift. He consulted with his mentor and friend, HRI Director Antoinette Burton, to begin to realize that wish.
“I wanted this gift to be situated in the humanities because I believe in the core mission of the humanities, and I believe in the people that inhabit these spaces in the 21st century,” he said.
He credits his Illinois humanities education for a career marked by adaptability. While he initially worked in the family restaurant business, Tony pivoted to a new career in advancement when he joined the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences advancement team in 2015. Today he is assistant vice president of transformational giving at the University of Central Florida and also co-leads a consultancy, Cognitive Empowerment, that provides training and resources on ethical fundraising with aging donor populations.
“I believe that thinking critically, taking risks, being able to write without AI and having it be my true voice, being able to communicate well with people—all of these things are in direct relation to me being a product of the humanities at Illinois,” he said.
Tony’s two older sisters are also Illinois graduates. He sees his mother reflected in them in many ways. “I think she lives on today, most concretely, through my sisters, because they were older when she passed away. But I think we all want to live up to the promise of who she was and what she stood for. It feels really good and meaningful for our family to honor mom in this way.”
If you would like to support the Merry-Ann Pomonis Humanities Fund, visit HRI's giving page and select the fund under “Gift Designation.”