United States High School Yearbooks by County
R. Craig Riley, 57, was former longtime resident
R. Craig Riley, 57, of Gaston, N.C., formerly of New Milford, died March 7. He was the husband of Heather (Wood) Riley.
Mr. Riley was born Feb. 25, 1947, in New Rochelle, N.Y., son of the late Curtis Allen and Thelma (Morrell) Riley.
He worked in real estate with the William Pitt Agency. In addition, he was a retail merchandiser for the Pezrow Company and a teacher in Woodbury for 25 years until his retirement in 1994.
Mr. Riley earned his bachelor and master degrees at Western Connecticut State University. He received his sixth year from Southern Connecticut State University.
He was past master of St. Peter’s Masonic Lodge No. 21, New Milford; the Royal Arch Masons, Crusader Commander No. 10, Danbury; and the Pyramid Shrine. He was a member of the New Milford Trust for Historic Preservation and the New Milford Commission on Affordable Housing.
Besides his wife, Mr. Riley is survived by a sister, Shirley Morren of Sherman. He was predeceased by a brother, David.
A memorial service will be held May 22 at 2 p.m. at St. Peter’s Masonic Lodge, No. 21, 11 Aspetuck Ave., New Milford.
Contributions in his memory may be made to the Book of Remembrance, St. Peter’s Masonic Lodge, No. 21, P.O. Box 461, New Milford, CT 06776; or to a charity of one’s choice.
Nettie Beczek, 86, had family in New Milford area
Nettie Beczek, 86, of Jacksonville, Fla., formerly of Danbury, died March 19 in Jacksonville. She was the widow of Zygmund Beczek.
Mrs. Beczek was born Aug. 6, 1917, in Beacon, N.Y., daughter of Alexander and Mary Dziminowicz.
She was a member of Sacred Heart Church in Danbury and the Ladies Guild. She worked at Barden Corporation, retiring in 1985. She enjoyed crocheting lap blankets for wheelchair patients and tiny hats for preemie babies for Hospice.
Mrs. Beczek is survived by two daughters, Barbara of Jacksonville and Elaine Pruchnik of New Milford; two brothers, John Dziminowicz of Fox Fire Village, N.C., and Al Dziminowicz of Poughkeepsie, N.Y.; three sisters, Ann Koehler of New Milford, and Helen Tierney and Frances Adams of Poughkeepsie; three grandchildren, Denis Pruchnik of Southbury, Frank Pruchnik Jr. of Sherman and Laurie Pruchnik of Danbury; three great-grandchildren, Amber and Jesse Pruchnik of Sherman, and Elizabeth Grimaldi of Danbury; and several nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by a sister, Dr. Mary Tomanio of Eliot, Maine, and a brother, Joseph Dana of Poughkeepsie
The Green Funeral Home of Danbury was in charge of arrangements.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Sacred Heart Church, 12 Cottage St., Danbury, CT 06810; or to Community Hospice of North Florida, 4266 Sunbeam Road, Jacksonville, FL 32257; or to a charity of one’s choice.
George W. Covill Jr., 61, brother of local residents
George Webb Covill Jr., 61, died March 5 in Eatonton, Ga. He was the husband of Cherie (Helms) Covill.
Mr. Covill was the son of Lillian (Fisher) Covill of Brookfield and the late George Webb Covill Sr.
He was a native of Brookfield and was a graduate of Henry Abbott Regional Technical School. He served in the U.S. Air Force, stationed in Kansas.
He worked for the town of Brookfield before moving to Wisconsin. He was employed with Kimberly-Clark for a number of years. He retired as plant manager for the New Milford Block & Supply Company.
Besides his wife and mother, Mr. Covill is survived by a daughter, Kimberly Ann Rudolph of Eatonton; a son, George III of Brookfield; two sisters, Dorothy Bartram of New Milford and Kathleen White of Lynn Center, Ill.; four brothers, William of Morgan, Utah, Keith of Hickory, N.C., Alan of New Milford and Bruce of Brookfield; two grandchildren, Tony and Allen George of Eatonton; and stepchildren, step-grandchildren, nieces, nephews. aunts and uncles.
The Williams Funeral Home and Crematory of Milledgeville, Ga., was in charge of arrangements.
In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to the local Hospice chapter of one’s choic
Joan M. Morris, 68, had family in area towns
Joan M. (Fogarty) Morris, 68, of Maloney Lane, New Milford, died March 19 at New Milford Hospital. She was the wife of Frank P. Morris.
Mrs. Morris was born Oct. 5, 1935, in the Bronx, N.Y., daughter of the late James and Mary (McGuiness) Fogarty.
She had been a resident of New Milford since 1963. She was a member of Our Lady of the Lakes Church, an active member of the Altar Society, and a former member of St. Francis Xavier Church and the St. Francis School Association.
She was an administration assistant with Powers and Powers, attorneys at law.
Besides her husband Mrs. Morris is survived by three sons, Edward of Morris, Patrick of New Preston and John of Torrington; four daughters, Carol Zucca of New Milford, Kathleen Clancy of Sherman, Nancy Stolz of New Milford and Marie Morris of Danbury; a brother, John Fogarty of Florida; a sister, Eileen Boylam of Yorktown Heights, N.Y.; and eight grandchildren. She was predeceased by a son, Michael.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in her memory may be made to Our Lady of the Lakes Church, 3 Old Town Road, New Milford, CT 06776.
Margery Osuch, 80, was a native of Washington
Margery W. Osuch, 80, of East Cornwall died March 17 at Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Torrington. She was the wife of Charles F. Osuch.
Mrs. Osuch was born May 21, 1923, in Washington, daughter of the late Walter and Barbara (Bolton) Sheldon.
Besides her husband, Mrs. Osuch is survived by two sons, Charles Jr. and his wife Shirley of Charlestown, R.I., and Stephen and his wife Carolyn of Knoxville, Ark.; four daughters, Sophie Bock of Pine Plains, N.Y., Margaret of East Cornwall, Mary Ann Wilber and her husband Doug of Morris, and Barbara Kilmer and her husband David of Cornwall Bridge; two brothers, William Sheldon of New Milford and Peter Sheldon of Arizona; two sisters, Emily Whitford of East Cornwall and Jean Mosher of Warren; 13 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in her memory may be made to the American Heart Association, 5 Brookside Drive, P.O. Box 5022, Wallingford, CT 06492-7522.
Alfred Wendland, 82, lived in Washington
Alfred Wendland, 82, of Washington died March 22 at New Milford Hospital. He was the husband of Cecile (Beauchemin) Wendland.
Mr. Wendland was born Dec. 25, 1921, in Stratford, son of the late Otto and Frances (Geromin) Wendland.
He worked at Bullards Foundry and was a union carpenter for 50 years.
Besides his wife, Mr. Wendland is survived by a son, Alfred of Shelton; a daughter, Carol Sirowich of Washington; five grandchildren, David, Brian, Michael and James Wendland, and Renee Bablowka; four great-grandchildren, Ashley, Danielle and Matthew Wendland, and Jake Bablowka.
A memorial service will be held Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 22 Old Park Lane Road, New Milford.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford is in charge of arrangements.
Herbert Witthoft, 92, was a Washington resident
Herbert C. Witthoft, 92, of Washington died Feb. 26 at his home. He was the husband of Martha Witthoft.
Mr. Witthoft received his bachelor and master degrees from Purdue University.
He worked for Anaconda Wire and Cable Co. in Marion, Ind., for 40 years, retiring as vice president of engineering and research.
His hobbies included literature, classical music, sports, woodworking, gardening and the New York Times crossword puzzle.
Besides his wife, Mr. Witthoft is survived by a son, Stephen; a daughter, Gretchen; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
The Woodbury Funeral Home of Munson-Lovetere was in charge of arrangements.
Edward Knapp, Sr., 89, father of New Milfordite
Edward Charles Knapp Sr., 89, died March 20 at New Milford Hospital. He was the widower of Isabel (Pitcher) Knapp.
Mr. Knapp was born April 21, 1914, in Brookfield, son of the late Orson B. and Alice C. (Burdick) Knapp.
He lived his entire life in Brookfield. He started work for Frank Lee’s Hat Shop in Danbury, then worked for Beezo Loundsbury as a carpenter. Later, he became self-employed as a carpenter and did home repair work until 1956. He then started work for Bullock Marine Sales, retiring at 68.
He loved to hunt, fish, play baseball, bowl and spend time in his vegetable garden.
Mr. Knapp is survived by a daughter, Dolores of Brookfield; a son, Edward Jr. of New Milford; five grandchildren, Deborah Quinn of Woodbury, Dale of Brookfield, LeRoy of Torrington, Caithleen of Woodbury and Crystal of New Milford; seven great-grandchildren; and two step-great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by two brothers, Clarence and Chester.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-1905.
Nancy L. Picchione, 88, had lived in New Milford
Nancy (Liberatori) Picchione, 88, of New Milford died March 20 at her home. She was the widow of Louis A. Picchione of Washington.
Mrs. Picchione was born Nov. 15, 1915, in the Bronx, N.Y., the daughter of the late Bartolomeo and Caterina (Latini) Liberatori.
She spent her youth in New York and had been a resident of the New Milford-Washington area for the past 40 years. She was a former employee of the Upholstery Shed in New Milford.
Mrs. Picchione is survived by three daughters, Genevieve Quigley of Bristol, R.I., Catherine Hull of Bantam and Louise Heaton of New Milford; two sons, Dominic of New Milford and James of Hawthorne, N.Y.; five foster children, the late Judy Pomeroy of the Bronx, Janice Cantela and Donna Miller of New Milford, Gail DeFronze of Watertown and Joseph Pisaneli of Bethel; 23 grandchildren; and 29 great-grandchildren.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in her memory may be made to the New Milford Visiting Nurse Association, 68 Park Lane Road, New Milford, CT 06776.
Gregory D. Cassel, 49, was a resident of Kent
Gregory David Cassel, 49, of Kent died March 20 at New Milford Hospital. He was the husband of Joan I. (Bunkoczy) Cassel.
Mr. Cassel was born Sept. 8, 1954, in Middlebury, Vt., son of the late Harold Cassel and Mary Hinckley of Kent.
He served in the Navy during the Vietnam War.
He was a resident of Kent for the past four years, having previously lived in Sherman. He owned and operated Cassel Can Do in Sherman. He was a member of the New Milford VFW, a volunteer at the Kent Nursing Home, a member of the Gaylordsville and Kent Volunteer fire departments, an EMT for the Kent Fire Department and a member of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Kent.
Besides his wife, Mr. Cassel is survived by a daughter, Stephanie of Kent. He was predeceased by a sister, Melinda Powell.
A memorial service will be held tomorrow (Saturday) at 11 a.m. at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Main Street, Kent.
The Hufcut Funeral Home, Main St., Dover Plains, N.Y., is in charge of the arrangements.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Main Street, Kent, CT 06757; or to the Kent Food Bank, c/o Selectman’s Office, Town Hall, 41 Kent Green Blvd., Kent, CT 06757; or to the Kent Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 355, Kent, CT 06757.
Joseph W. Squires, 74, was born in New Milford
Joseph W. Squires, 74, of Morris, formerly of New Milford, died March 20 at New Milford Hospital. He was the husband of Frances (Koehler) Squires.
Mr. Squires was born Dec. 11, 1929, in New Milford, the son of the late Charles A. and Millie (Thomas) Squires.
He was raised and educated in New Milford, and was a lifelong resident until moving to Morris one and a half years ago.
He was employed for 30 years as a mechanic with the Connecticut Light and Power Co., retiring in 1985. He was a member of the Water Witch Hose Co. No. 2. in New Milford with over 45 years of service.
Besides his wife, Mr. Squires is survived by a son, Daryl of Warren; six daughters, Sheryl Skroski of North Haven, Crystal Nava of Diamond Bar, Calif., Melinda Wescott of Riverside, Calif., Marci Pavain of Sylvania, Ohio, Linda Easterbrook of Bantam and Patricia Humiston of Raleigh, N.C.; two brothers, Raymond of Southbury and Richard of New Milford; a sister, Doris Anderson of New Milford; 17 grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
The Colonial Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
In lieu of flowers contributions in his memory may be made to the Water Witch Hose Co. Fireman’s Scholarship Fund, 8 Grove St., New Milford, CT 06776.
