Call Now (727) 524-9202 - Available 24/7
Fax: 727-536-6783
Let the family know you
care by sharing this tributes.
Life story coming soon…
Leave a condolence
Veterans Funeral Care
830 N. Belcher Rd.
Clearwater, FL 33765
Call Now (727) 524-9202 - Available 24/7
Fax: 727-536-6783
Veterans Funeral Care is endorsed by The American Legion, Dept of Indiana
The prices on this website for funeral & cremation services are applicable in greater west central Florida only. For pricing outside this area, please call.
Melodies linger on of your musical gift to the world. Thanks for sharing
so many nights of sheer joy. Rest in peace, dear friend.,
Vicki and Ray Braun Dayton OH
Dear Deb, We are really sad to here that Lito had passed from Gerry. Lito was such a great guy. We will always miss him at the piano. We are thinking of you.
Love Bob & Debi
Oh Debra,
We are so terribly heartbroken to learn of Lito’s passing. Lito’s music was as unforgettable as his warm, kind, joyful, tender, genuine, loving soul. We could literally feel a warm glow radiate from him & also from his music. Lito was joy personified. I’m so thankful our paths crossed & we walked a few miles of life’s path with Lito & you. I’ve thought of you every single day & pray God wraps his loving arms around you & gives you strength & courage & peace to carry on without your dear & beloved husband. Alan & I send you our love & we grieve along with you.
Alan & Denise Jones
Des Moines suburb, Iowa
Debbie
My condolences to you and the family —we will miss his music and sweet spirit. He is with the Lord playing piano for him. I have many fond memories of playing with him and always enjoyed his company . Can you give me a call at 727-421-1956 because I would like to contact his brother and others thanks and God bless Joe Lori Braccio
Deborah
Our hearts ache for you and family and myself i will miss my brother in christ as well as fellow musician. Lito was a phenomenal musician who knew tens of thousands in tunes. We played together at the Don Cesar for many years and at the Tides country club on Redington beach. He was a very sweet soul and look forward to seeing him in Heaven where our Lord am sure welcomed him. God bless joe lori braccio
Debbie, I am so sorry for your loss. Listening to Lito play the piano at Three Olives was the highlight of my week. He was such a kind, considerate, wonderful person with such great talent. I will think back on those days of him playing music and you and I chatting while at the bar fondly forever.
We just found out about Lido’s passing. Our condolences. He was a wonderful piano player and always seemed full of joy. Lido honored us by playing at our wedding at Cafe Ponte six years ago. We did in fact meet you at Cafe Ponte as well, and you were very warm and friendly. May Lido Rest In Peace. ❤️
Lito, you brought us hours and hours of beautiful music, you brought us a friendship that we treasured. We miss you terribly. We hope you find a great piano in heaven that’s worthy of your magic on the keyboard. We will love you forever!
Deborah, We are so very sad to learn of Lito’s passing. You know we always tried to connect when we were in town. We have amazing memories of our evenings together at the Don. You would join us and the Williams for the evening. We listened as long as he would play. He had such a great smile and such an amazing gift. He brought so much joy yo so many through his music. Our hearts go out to you. Sending our love and prayers.
My deepest condolences to Lito’s family. I knew him a long time ago. May he rest in peace.
Dear Lito in heaven,
Many happy memories of your beautiful music at The Don Cesar Beach Resort when my son Drew was a bellman.
Thank you & sending warmest condolences to your family.
My son & I was just talking of those years.
Your music was the soundtrack for everyone.
I listen to the CD’s sometimes & will surely be playing them more often.
I spent 2 memorable Christmas’ at the Don & other visits.
I was just telling Drew about your sharing a story during one of your breaks with my husband & I.
It was recollections of your youth seeing 19 or 20 year old Marines as they arrived for R& R or deployed back to jungle combat zones in Vietnam.
Thank you dear Lito! You will always be remembered with fondness for you kindness to my son Drew. Your place on the keyboard of the most grandest piano in heaven is assured.
I just heard that Lito had passed and I am crushed. In my life I have never met a nicer and kinder person than Lito. The way he dealt with [people during the 25 years he was at the “Don”. I was happy to call him my friend. The world was better with him in it
My heart is broken. This man awakened my love of piano music. My family visited St. Pete Beach in 2002 or 2003 and stayed at the Don Cesar, as it was an annual event for my dad. One evening, I went down to the lobby area for something and heard piano music. I followed it to find Mr. Cortez playing. I ended up spending most of my evenings sitting nearby to listen to him play. Luckily, I purchased an album from him for $10-15, I can’t remember the amount. Over the years since then, the original CD was lost. But, like a typical kid of the time, I burned the tracks to my PC. From time to time, I’d get a new computer or a new hard drive, so I’d copy them over. Now here we are in 2023, and I still have them all. I’ve listened to them all so much that I can whistle along.
This evening, I found myself in the mood to listen to some piano. So, as I often have, I chose to listen to Lito. Some time back, years ago, I decided to see if I could find anything about him online. I found a small youtube channel that he had apparently set up at some point, but it had no new uploads. Tonight, I decided to try to find him again, thinking that it would be good to reconnect and see if he’s still playing. I found this page instead.
I can’t properly express my condolences. I knew him for a few short evenings and spoke to him briefly about his playing and how long he’d been doing so. His music has been a big part of my life, even though I only have this one album. The world has grown darker with his passing.