Salvatore “Sam” Angelo Bufalino, age 74, of Imperial Missouri, passed away Tuesday, November 9th 2021, peacefully with his family at his side.
Sam was born, July 19th 1947, in Pittston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania to the late Angelo and Margaret Bufalino.
Sam was a brilliant flight test engineer and began his career with Boeing in 1969 at Douglas Aircraft in Long Beach California and Yuma Arizona focused on commercial flight test programs, most notably the DC-10. In 1976 he relocated his family to St. Louis Missouri and spent the remainder of his career, retiring in 2014, working on military flight test programs for McDonnell Douglas/Boeing, most notably the AV-8B, F-18, P-8A, and several experimental programs.
Sam received his Bachelor’s of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and Master’s and PhD in Engineering Management from University of Missouri Rolla. Sam was a dedicated and loving father and grandfather, motorcycle enthusiast, St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan, and lifelong Virginia Tech Hokies fan. He thoroughly enjoyed spending his time at his grandchildren’s sporting and scouting events and traveling throughout the country with his good friends on his Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Sam will be dearly missed by his loving family and friends.
Sam is survived by his son, Angelo (Pamela) Bufalino and grandson, Salvatore “Sammy” Bufalino; daughter, Virginia “Gia” (Anthony) Bufalino-Rossetti; daughter, Andrea “Drea” (Bradley) Martin and granddaughter, Alyson Martin, and grandson, Ryan Martin; two brothers Nicholas Bufalino and Charles Bufalino; one sister, Josephine Burris.
Services: Visitation will be Tuesday, November 16th 2021, at Kutis Funeral Home, 5255 Lemay Ferry Road, St. Louis, Missouri 63129 from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Funeral mass will be held Wednesday, November 17th 2021, at Queen of All Saints Catholic Church, 6603 Christopher Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63129 starting at 10:00 AM.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Greater St. Louis Area Council, Boy Scouts of America, Friends of Scouting (stlbsa.org) or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (stjude.org).
Sam was a great man, a mentor, a teacher and most importantly a great friend! Rest easy my friend. Thank you for the thousands of miles of adventures. You will be sorely missed, but will be forever in our hearts.
Good man. God be with you in your new home.
I want to express my deepest and most heart felt condolences for the loss of your father. What a blessing to have had so many years laughing and loving. Although he will be absent from your physical life, he remains with you and you WILL feel him everyday. I love you my dear friend, Gia. Prayers for you and your family for peaceful and loving thoughts.
May his memory be a blessing to your family. He was so fortunate to have his family with him. The difference between love and attachment is that love is truly eternal and radiates spontaneously without any sense of clinging. Whether two people are physically together or not, in whatever plane of existence they may travel, love will always unite them in spirit. Linda johnsen
Sam was a friend and great co-worker at McDD/Boeing. I know he will be missed by all who knew him. Work was always more fun with Sam.
Sam was my manager while I was working in Seattle around the time McDonnell Douglas merged with Boeing. It was great working with Sam on this challenging program. Sam had a way to work through all the challenges presented and keep everyone motivated to find solutions.
I am so sorry to hear of the loss of your father and our friend, Sam.
Sam was an amazing leader at McDonnell-Douglas/Boeing and was one of the best people I ever met. My sincerest sympathy to Sam’s family.
Sam was friend, mentor, and co-worker. Sam and I spent many hours discussing the ownership fun of installing and maintaining in-ground pools. Sam was always willing to help with our test programs at McDonnell Douglas/Boeing and he was sought after for his knowledge in aircraft instrumentation. Sam will be missed very much.
Sam was such an inspiration to our son, Matthew, and the other boy scouts at Troop 21 in Clayton. Despite his age, he came on adventures with us including camping trips, hiking in Yosemite, canoeing the Boundary Waters, rafting down the Buffalo River, and many more. We will miss him. May he rest in peace.
– The Awad Family
I was sad to hear of your dad’s passing. His life was so impressive!! Obviously a very brilliant man and dedicated father and grandfather. Gia you have his spirit and though it will be hard you will share that with so many others! Thinking of you and sending prayerful support!!
My deepest condolences to Sam’s family. My thoughts and prayers are with you all. I worked with Sam at Boeing. He was always available to give advice, answer questions, and just a lot of fun to talk to and listen to his many stories. Super nice guy and perfect gentleman. I’m sure he’s riding like the wind on his Harley in heaven!
Sorry for your loss.
We’ll miss Sam at the Boy Scouts campouts and trips. He was a remarkable and interesting man, and fine example to the boys. God bless his soul.
Sam was one of the first friends I made after moving to Saint Louis. He and his family made us all feel at home. God bless you Sam.
I am so sorry for your loss. All my best wishes to you and your family.