One of the select few to qualify for and successfully complete Navy SEAL training, Anthony Lanzillotti embarked on an illustrious career that spanned 37 years and included five deployments, tours of duty in 10 countries and an assignment at the Pentagon.

The older of two children, Anthony Lanzillotti was born in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago to Carmen and Ann (Corbin) Lanzillotti. The family moved from the North Side to Deerfield, where Lanzillotti grew up. His great-grandparents emigrated from the Calabria and Abruzzo regions of Italy.