Xavier "Toby" Tovar's Obituary
Xavier “Toby” Tovar passed away peacefully on the evening of February 26, 2023, at the age of eighty-five.
Toby was born in Los Angeles to Manuel Tovar and Rebecca (Argandona) Tovar. He graduated from Belmont High in 1956 and attended East Los Angeles College. He married his sweetheart, Esther “Linda” Guevara, in 1961, and was then drafted into the US Army. He served as a Warrant Officer with the Corp of Engineering and was stationed in West Germany until he was discharged in 1963. He later served in the reserves until 1970.
Toby returned to Los Angeles to Linda and their daughter, Jessica, and began working with an architectural firm. Linda saw an ad in the paper that Disney were hiring Architects
and unbeknownst to Toby, she sent in his resume.
In August of 1966, he began a long career with the Walt Disney Company as an Imagineer at WED Enterprises, now known as Walt Disney Imagineering. During his career, Toby worked on numerous projects including Main Street USA, The Crystal Palace, Columbia Harbour House, Disney Springs (formally known as Lake Buena Vista Village) and Mickey’s Birthdayland (the precursor to ToonTown at Walt Disney World and Disneyland). He moved his family to Paris, France in January of 1989, where he was deeply involved in creating and building Main Street at EuroDisney. Toby returned to Central Florida in 1991. Upon his retirement, Toby held the distinction of having his work on every Main Street in every theme park of the Walt Disney Company.
After 28 years as an Imagineer with the Walt Disney Company Toby retired in 1994. During his retirement, he traveled with his wife Linda around the US and spending time with his family. Afterwards, Toby started his second career as a Project Manager for Universal Studios, building Islands of Adventure which led him to the firm of MRI Architects in Orlando where he did many projects for Orange County and the State of Florida.
He was a beloved and respected resident of West Orange County, Florida where he was a Booster for the West Orange High School swim team and an official with US Swimming. On Saturday mornings you would find him with his lifelong friends having breakfast in Winter Garden. He enjoyed woodworking and is known for his tacos. Toby was a mentor and a loyal friend to those who knew him well.
He followed college football faithfully and was a fan of the Florida State Seminoles and most recently the Utah Utes. He and his fellow Imagineers started a poker group in Burbank Ca in 1966 and continued in Florida with the same group until he moved to Salt Lake City in 2016. He was a friend to animals and could often be found with his dog by his side. Toby was a navigational whiz and needed only a map and a stick shift to seek adventure.
Toby is survived by his daughters, Jessica Renee (Jamie) Lord-Tovar ; Monica Denise (Deb Willes) Tovar; Lynda Lorrine (Laura Ellerbe) Tovar; son, Xavier Anthony Tovar and grandson, Joseph Xavier Tovar. He is preceded in death by his wife Linda and son, Carlos Timothy.
Family had many meanings to Toby and his wife Linda; Robert, and Cindy Laughrea (Cassie and Courtney) and Cheryl Hardy (Jordan) are family as well.
A memorial service is planned for Saturday, April 8 at 2:00pm. The service will be held at Premier Funeral Services, 67 East 8000 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84047. All are invited to attend. His interment will take place in Winter Garden, Florida this summer where he will be placed next to his wife of 51 years, Linda. Details regarding the date will be announced later.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Toby’s name to the Utah Animal Advocacy Foundation, UAAF.Org.
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