Dom Annacone, former superintendent of Wainscott schools, dies at 86

Dom Annacone was deeply involved in whatever his life pursuits were — teaching, administrating, fishing, playing tennis, skipping rope.  

“Whatever my dad did, he was really into it,” said his son Steve Annacone. “He was a jogger and he ran for a while. He was into physical fitness. His workout became jumping a rope. He would literally jump rope every single day. And when I say jump rope, he would go out on our deck in East Hampton and all of a sudden you would hear this thump, thump, thump, thump. He would do 10,000 jump ropes every day — 10,000. And he could do it without missing. That’s how he was. He was incredibly focused, really organized, amazing concentration.”

Dominic Annacone, a longtime educator on the East End, died at his Amagansett home Sept. 12 after a prolonged illness. He was 86.

Dominic Annacone was the youngest son of Loretta and Thomas Annacone of upstate Peekskill. Annacone graduated from SUNY New Paltz in 1957 and then earned a doctorate in educational administration from Hofstra University.

According to his family, Annacone was a figure in East End schools for decades. He was principal of Pierson High School in Sag Harbor, and went on to serve as the district’s superintendent until 1991. He then became the interim superintendent for Springs Schools, where he remained as a curriculum consultant before becoming the superintendent of the Wainscott School District from 1997 to 2011.

He also taught at the old Ramey Air Force Base in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, in the late 1960s.

One of Annacone’s most avid pursuits was tennis, playing at the park in Sag Harbor with his then-wife Catherine. That ultimately led to Steve and his younger brother Paul to pursue professional tennis. Paul became an ATP Tour player who won three tournaments and went on to became a coach of such all-time greats as Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. Still a coach, he is also a Tennis Channel commentator.

Steve became Paul’s professional coach at the beginning of his career and remains a coach, working out of Montauk and Tucson, Arizona.

“My brother Steve and I learned tennis because my parents picked it up,” said Paul Annacone. “When they didn’t have dollars for babysitters, they took us along to the courts.”

Annacone is survived by Steven and Paul from his marriage to Catherine; his grandchildren Nicholas, Olivia and Emmett; and his longtime partner, Mary Stone.

A viewing will be held at the Yardley Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. with a service at Most Holy Trinity Cemetery in East Hampton from 1:30 to 2 p.m.