Remem­ber­ing Chuck Tanzola

Dear Mem­bers and Colleagues,

It is with great sad­ness that we announce the pass­ing of Charles ​“Chuck” Tan­zo­la, a leader in the elec­tron­ics com­po­nents indus­try and Pres­i­dent of both the Elec­tron­ic Dis­tri­b­u­tion Show (EDS) and the Elec­tron­ics Rep­re­sen­ta­tives Asso­ci­a­tion (ERA). Chuck passed away sud­den­ly at his home in Lans­ing, New York on Decem­ber 7, 2023. He was 64 years old.

This is a pro­found loss, and our hearts go out to his wife of 39 years Pamela, his son Joshua, grand­daugh­ter Char­lotte, sis­ters Don­na, Tam­my and Lau­ra, and step­moth­er Bar­bara Scott.

As his col­leagues and friends, we have had the immense priv­i­lege of work­ing along­side Chuck. His bril­liance, thought­ful­ness, and prin­ci­pled approach to his pro­fes­sion made him not just an excep­tion­al leader but also a won­der­ful man. We will miss him dearly.

Chuck grad­u­at­ed from Cor­nell Uni­ver­si­ty in 1981 with an AB in both Eco­nom­ics and Elec­tri­cal Engi­neer­ing and embarked on a notable 41-year career in the elec­tron­ics com­po­nents indus­try. At his pass­ing, he was an own­er of Fusion Sourc­ing Group, where he served as Vice Pres­i­dent for Busi­ness Devel­op­ment since 2004.

In 2018, Chuck was hon­ored with the pres­ti­gious Ray Hall Spir­it of ERA Award, rec­og­niz­ing his sig­nif­i­cant con­tri­bu­tions and influ­ence in his field. He dili­gent­ly served two terms as ERA Chair­man of the Board and Board Pres­i­dent and was a vital mem­ber of the ERA Exec­u­tive Com­mit­tee for 20 years.

Beyond his pro­fes­sion­al achieve­ments, Chuck was active­ly involved in his com­mu­ni­ty as a Deacon/​Trustee and Trea­sur­er of the Asbury Church Assem­bly of God. He was also an avid golfer and dot­ing grandfather.

Chuck­’s absence will be deeply felt across our indus­try and by every­one who had the hon­or of know­ing him. Let’s con­tin­ue striv­ing for the excel­lence he con­sis­tent­ly demon­strat­ed through­out his career.

Dona­tions can be made in Chuck­’s name to the Wil­low Glen Chris­t­ian School, 1768 Dry­den Rd, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also donate online.

With heart­felt sympathy,

Wal­ter E. Tobin

CEO & Exec­u­tive Vice Pres­i­dent,
Elec­tron­ics Rep­re­sen­ta­tives Asso­ci­a­tion (ERA)

David Lof­tus

Pres­i­dent & CEO,
Elec­tron­ic Com­po­nents Indus­try Asso­ci­a­tion (ECIA)