CARBONDALE, Pa. — Michael Delfino passed away on Friday at the age of 98.
Most people knew him as the longtime owner of the Circle Drive-in Theater, but he's also being remembered for how much he gave back to his community.
The Circle Drive-in is empty now, but soon enough, it will be full of people and cars enjoying some old fashioned family fun. But this season will be a bit different now that the man who has been at the helm of the theater for nearly 60 years is gone.
Michael Delfino is leaving behind a long legacy, not just at the drive-in but in his hometown, too.
"I'm a firm believer in perpetuity, and that's forever, and everything here is going to last forever. It's going to be here permanently, and that's why we are doing that," said Michael Delfino, speaking to Newswatch 16 in 2015, when a second screen was added to the Circle Drive-in Theater in Dickson City. It was Delfino's pride and joy.
While the theater off Business Route 6 was where his passion for film was put on display, Carbondale was where he called home.
A lifelong resident, Delfino was considered family by many people in the city. And that includes the people at the Greater Carbondale YMCA.
"If you want to live a really good life, you would use Mike as an example," said Lorrie Williams.
"They were givers, and it shows in everything that Mike and Gwen touched," added Mary Pantzar.
About a decade ago, the "Y" was seeking to expand, which included a new pool, something Delfino had wanted to bring to Carbondale for years. So he and his late wife Gwen offered the "Y" a $1 million donation to help cover the costs of the project.
"When we started this project years ago, I'll be honest with you, I didn't think we would ever see it," Pantzar said.
The Delfinos names are forever immortalized on the outside of the building where the pool is housed because, without them, the pool might not have been possible.
Every summer, Delfino's two worlds collided. More than 100 children from the YMCA's summer day camp would descend upon the Circle Drive-in Theater, and Delfino would feed them popcorn and play them a movie, all free of charge.
Those who knew him say he was a child at heart and found happiness in simple pleasures.
"The joy that he gave to so many people and the memories that live on after he's gone. But he's still all around us," Williams added.
Delfino is continuing to give back to the YMCA, even in death. According to his obituary, in lieu of flowers, people can donate to the Carbondale YMCA in his memory.