EASTON, Pa. — Sal Panto Sr. was a throwback to Easton’s “old days.”
Panto, a longtime Easton businessman and father of the current mayor, died Tuesday. He was 98.
For more than 25 years, Panto was proprietor of Sal’s Meat Market — a mom-and-pop grocery and butcher shop on Cattell Street on College Hill.
He ran the place with Sal Jr. — today the Easton mayor — then worked 10 years as a part-time butcher at Wegmans in Lower Nazareth Township before retiring at age 83.
“People of his generation were hard workers and loyal to their employer.”Mayor Sal Panto Jr.
“When I think of people of his generation, I think of people who gave back to the community, who were very involved,” said his son, Sal Jr., now in his fifth consecutive term as Easton mayor and seventh term overall.
“People of his generation were hard workers and loyal to their employer.”
The Pantos opened Sal’s Meat Market in 1976. It was a corner store with a faithful following of customers and a counter that bore witness to the news and gossip of the day — weather, sports, politics.
While Sal Sr. didn’t take the political career path of his son, he was active in Democratic politics.
His reputation and connections came in handy on College Hill, a Republican outpost in a Democratic city known for its bare-knuckles politics.
In those days, political differences never got in the way of neighborliness and customer service, especially when it came to Panto Sr.’s cuts of meat and homemade sausage, Sal Jr. said.
“My dad worked for politicians,” he said. “He was a good campaigner. He knew a lot of people up there on College Hill. He worked hard for Jim Prendergast [the late state representative] and for me.
“He was well appreciated and respected on College Hill. He loved the customers.”
Devotion to faith, education
Another love of Panto Sr. was Notre Dame High School.
He and his late wife Mary — she died in 2007 after 58 years of marriage — put their four children through the Catholic school in Bethlehem Township.
In 2023, Panto Sr. was inducted into the Notre Dame Hall of Fame in recognition of his support and volunteerism through the years.
“I learned a lot from Mr. Panto. He was very set in his ways but in a good way."Bobby Dailey, of Palmer Township
Panto Sr. was a lifelong member of St. Anthony of Padua Roman Catholic Church in Easton.
He was the oldest member of its Holy Name Society as well as the eldest of the Holy Cross Society — a religious fraternal organization with members who trace their roots to Santo Stefano, a village in Sicily.
Born in Easton, Panto Sr. was a U.S. Army veteran who worked odd jobs after returning from the service, including in the cafeteria at the old Mack Printing in Wilson.
His son said that’s where Panto Sr. learned to cook. He went on to work at the old Co-Op Market on Cattell Street — a grocery at the site of the current College Hill Wawa — and worked his way up to become produce and meat manager.
Bobby Dailey, of Palmer Township, said Panto Sr. gave him his first job cutting meat at the Co-Op Market in 1975.
“I learned a lot from Mr. Panto,” Dailey, 69, said. “He was very set in his ways but in a good way.
“If there would be something to be done, he would let it be known this is the way it should be done. A lot of my traits came from him. He was strict but fair.”
Dailey went to work at Sal’s a few blocks down the road after the Pantos opened their own shop.
“When he started with me, I was just a young guy,” Dailey said. “He gave me my start. He taught me a lot about meat cutting and I ended up with a 35-year career in it.”
Services set
Panto Sr. is survived by three sons — Sal Jr., Joseph and Paul — and a daughter, Nancy Casciole. He also is survived by 10 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
“He was respected by many and he was a man of good character.”Sal Panto Jr., speaking of his father
Visitation is set for 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27, at Morello Funeral Home in Palmer Township, and again from 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28. (See his obituary.)
A funeral Mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday at St. Anthony’s, Ninth and Lehigh streets, Easton.
Panto Jr. said his father remained “sharp as a tack” until the end, and lived independently until the last six weeks or so.
“He was kind,” his son said. “He was respected by many and he was a man of good character.”
