Published: July 01, 2009 09:15 am      

Vizzas named Citizens of Year

Patty and David Vizza of Tuttle have received the ultimate honor from their community of more than 20 years - the Citizen of the Year award.

The Vizzas will serve as Grand Marshal of Saturday’s Ice Cream Festival Parade.

Upon learning they had been chosen as Tuttle’s Citizens of the Year, each had a similar reaction.

“We were dumbfounded; David called me this morning and he still had shell shock,” said an emotional Patty. “My first thought was ‘How could I be in the same shoes of Brian Stewart? He meant so much to so many people.’”

Brian, who was named Citizen of the Year five years ago, died in 2005 of brain cancer. Brian was a sports enthusiast and a volunteer baseball coach in Tuttle who was so well-loved and admired, the Tuttle High School baseball field is named after him.

Brian’s father Jim Stewart felt much the same as the Vizzas did when he, too, joined his son as a recipient of the prestigious award last year. Interestingly, Stewart’s mother- and father-in-law have both held the honor of being named Citizen of the Year as well.

“Jim was high school principal forever, he was Ag teacher and he touched so many children’s lives. He was such a good figure for our kids, tough but I never heard any kid say anything bad about him, ever,” Vizza said. “David and I pretty much thought the same thing,’how do you come after those two?’”

The Vizzas were nominated by their friend and neighbor Bruna Varalli-Claypool, president of the Tuttle Area Chamber of Commerce.

“Their school involvement extended beyond the football program and Teachers Appreciation activities to school board involvement, from board member to School Board President. Tuttle Public Schools, as well as any Tuttle community could always count on a financial or time commitment from the David Vizza family,” said Varalli-Claypool

Still uncertain of what she and her David have done to deserve the award, Patty said, “My husband and I have volunteered, but no more than half the people in town. That’s probably one of the reasons we volunteered is because everyone else does.”

A substitute teacher, Patty volunteers for the PTO, football and baseball booster clubs and is active in the ag department.

“That’s my big love,” she said. “I’ve spent many hours working with the ag department.”

In addition, Patty has been a regular contributor to the Tuttle Times newspaper, providing superb sports photos during football season.

David owns and operates Vizza Metal Buildings and the couple also raises registered Texas Longhorns at Vizza Ranch.

Recently, one of David’s hand-raised steers took the title of Reserve Grand Champion Steer at the World Show in Ft. Worth, while another was named Grand Champion Female.

The couple’s daughter Becca is also involved with the Longhorns and is currently Youth President of the Texas Longhorn Breeders Association of America, which has affiliates all over the world, including Germany, Canada, Italy and Australia.

Their son David, a Tuttle High School graduate, attends Tarleton University where he is working toward an ag degree.

Becca, who attends Tuttle High School, hopes to attend OSU after graduation.

Since the family will soon be moving to San Antonio, Texas, Patty decided to forgo volunteering for the Ice Cream Festival Parade, thinking she would already have left Tuttle.

“It’s so funny, one of my volunteer things was coordinating the parade, but I couldn’t this year because I thought we would be gone by now,” said Patty.

Once settled back in his home state of Texas, David will go to work for one of his family’s businesses, which include ranching and high-end car washes that offer fancy boutiques that carry high-end merchandise where you can shop while your car is being spruced up.

“I think he’s mainly going to run the ranches,” Patty said.

As for herself, Patty hopes to do “absolutely nothing” after her daughter graduates from high school and is off to college next year.

“I think I’m rather going to enjoy it,” she said. “The only thing I’m going to miss is the wonderful people in town, there is a wonderful group of people here.”

The Vizzas do plan to return to Tuttle for the Brian Stewart Golf Tournament.