United States High School Yearbooks by County
Brian Petronella
Brian A. Petronella - age: 54
(March 28, 1956 to August 06, 2010 )
Resident of Norwalk, Connecticut
Visitation Information: Tuesday, August 10, 2010 3:30 pm - 8:00 pm At Magner Funeral Home
Brian A. Petronella, age 54 of Norwalk, beloved husband of Elaine Coker Petronella, died suddenly on August 6, 2010 in his home with his family by his side. Born in Norwalk on March 28, 1956 to Rosemarie Jaykus Petronella and the late Robert A. Petronella, he was predeceased by his brother Robert Burke Petronella.
Brian A. Petronella was the President of Local 371 UFCW, International Vice President and Executive Vice President of the Connecticut AFL-CIO. He was an active board member on several pro-labor organizations, including the United Way of Eastern Fairfield County.
Most recently Brian was honored at the McGivney Center in Bridgeport as “Man of the Year” and awarded the Corporate Achiever Award at the Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Through his union and personal donations, his charitable contributions were enormous. Each Christmas and Easter, Brian organized thousands of holiday baskets to be distributed through the Women’s Network, sponsored by the UFCW. In addition, each spring for the past 9 years, Brian chaired a Local 371 Golf Tournament raising over $225, 000 for the Leukemia Society. Brian also generously donated snacks to local after school programs.
As a labor leader, Brian was one of the best. He began his career in 1972 as a member of Local 371, Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workers of North America. He was employed by Grand Union Supermarkets. Brian was appointed Union Organizer in 1977 and graduated from the Harvard University Trade Union Program in 1978. Brain was responsible for many successful organizing campaigns and due to those efforts members enjoy the benefits of decent wages, generous benefits, secure pensions, and the dignity and respect that his members rightly deserved.
In 1982, the Local 371 Executive Board elected him to the office of Executive Vice President. During his time in office Brian chaired major negotiations in retail, wholesale, processing, healthcare and manufacturing. Following this position, Brian was promoted to the position of Secretary-Treasurer and proudly up to the position of Local 371 President, serving over 9, 000 members throughout Connecticut and Western Massachusetts. In addition, Brian was the Chairman of the Local 371 Amalgamated Welfare Trust Fund and a Trustee of the National UFCW Pension Fund. The Fairfield County Labor Council and the New England UFCW Food Council were also fortunate to have Brian serve as a President. Brian was also involved in politics, where he was well known and respected as a champion for working men and women.
Brian Petronella’s fiery enthusiasm, loyalty, generosity and genuine character will always be an inspiration to all who knew and loved him. Brian will always be remembered by his family as a devoted husband, father, son, brother, uncle and faithful friend. His laughter, smile, strength and giving nature will be dearly missed.
In addition to his beloved wife Elaine and his loving mother Rosemarie, Brian is survived by his daughters, Lindsey and Ashley Petronella, 2 sisters; Marilyn Liberatore and her husband Joseph, and Keri Whitehead and her husband Ricky, 2 brothers; Ronald Petronella and his wife Jan, and John Petronella; nieces and nephews, Kelly Liberatore Bishop and her husband Jarrod, Kevin Liberatore, Heather and April Whitehead, Jessica and Bobby Petronella and a great-nephew Cole Bishop and many uncles, aunts and cousins.
A funeral Mass will be held at 10am, Wednesday, August 11 at St. Aloysius Church, New Canaan, with burial to follow at St. John Cemetery, Norwalk. His family will receive friends on Tuesday, August 10, from 3:30 to 8:00 pm at Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue, Norwalk.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the College Trust Fund of his daughter Lindsey Burke Petronella; 290 Post West, Westport, Ct. 06881
John Gibson
John M. Gibson - age: 57 (September 11, 1952 to August 13, 2010 )
Resident of Norwalk, Connecticut
John M. Gibson, 57 years old, died in Norwalk on August 13, 2010. John was born in Fredonia, NY and was a resident at Southbury Training School for several years, then relocated to Norwalk where he became a resident of STAR – Lighting the Way. John was a proud member of the Norwalk United Methodist Church where he sang in the choir. He participated in Special Olympics and other local volunteer activities. John is survived by his wife, Annie Spalding Gibson, and his father, Philip Gibson, living in Stratford. John will be sorely missed by his many friends and staff members at STAR.
Sylvester Lippa
Sylvester Henry Lippa - age: 88
(July 26, 1922 to August 30, 2010 )
Resident of Norwalk, Connecticut
Visitation Information: Thursday, September 2, 2010 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm At Magner Funeral Home
Sylvester Henry Lippa, Age 88 of Rowayton, passed away on Monday, August 30, 2010 at St. Vincent’s Medical Center, Bridgeport. He was born on July 26, 1922 in Swoyerville, PA, son of the late Henry and Margaret Lippa. A graduate of Bridgeport Engineering Institute, Mr. Lippa worked for Sperry Remington Rand Corp. In later years, he was the Dept. Head of Drafting for J.M. Wright Technical School. A Navy Veteran of World War II, he served in the Pacific as a Quarter Master 1st Class, aboard the USS Manlove. He was also a member of The Knights of Columbus, Counsel #46 and New Horizons.
He is survived by his devoted wife of 58 years, Carole(DeMio) Lippa, loving daughter Louise Tyler and her husband Keith, 2 cherished grandchildren, Andrea and Jason Tyler, 3 sisters, Margaret Sterbinski of Wilkes-Barre, PA, Elizabeth Sipple of White Haven, PA. and Theresa DiFrancesco of Bluffton, SC, and other loving relatives.
Calling Hours will be held on Thursday, from 4 to 8pm at The Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue, Norwalk. A mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, September 3, at 11:00 at St. Joseph Church, Norwalk. Burial with Full Military Honors will follow at St. John Cemetery, Norwalk.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Joseph Church, 85 South Main St. Norwalk, CT 06854
Fred DeVito
Fred W. DeVito - age: 88
(March 26, 1922 to August 08, 2010 )
Resident of Bluffton, South Carolina
Visitation Information: A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Joseph Church in South Norwalk, on Wednesday September 15 at 11:00 a.m. Burial with Military Honors will follow at St. John cemetery in Norwalk.
Fred W. DeVito, 88, died peacefully Sunday, August 8, 2010 with his wife by his side after an extended illness.
He was born and raised in Norwalk, on March 26, 1922, son of the late Albert and Vincenza DeVito. He attended Norwalk High School and had been a lifelong resident until moving to Bluffton, SC five years ago. Fred enjoyed a full and active life. He loved to golf, swim and travel but especially cherished spending time with his wife Manny, his children and grandchildren. Fred was a veteran of the US Army having served during World War II. He was employed by the US Postal Service in Norwalk and retired after 40 years of service. He was a member of the Sons of Italy Pietro Micca Lodge and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 399.
Surviving are his loving and devoted family, wife Filomena (Manny) Rubino DeVito, daughters Elizabeth Evans and husband James of Bluffton, SC, Michele Cadle and husband Monte of Phoenix, AZ, and son Fred and wife Cathy of Enfield, CT; five grandchildren Sean Evans of Bluffton, SC, Jeffrey Cadle and wife Clare of Surprise, AZ, William Cadle of Phoenix, AZ, Rosa DeVito of Enfield, CT and Amanda DeVito of Bridgeport, CT; one great granddaughter Erika Villegas of Surprise, AZ, one sister Eleanor Talia of Norwalk and numerous nieces and nephews.
Fred was predeceased by his brothers Patrick, Albert Jr. and Americo DeVito.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Joseph Church in South Norwalk, on Wednesday September 15 at 11:00 a.m. Burial with Military Honors will follow at St. John cemetery in Norwalk.
Memorial Donations in Fred's name may be made to:
Tidewater Hospice
10 Buckingham Plantation Drive
Suite A
Bluffton, SC 29910
or the
American Diabetes Association
P.O. Box 11454
Alexandria, VA 22312
Magner Funeral Home has assisted the family with the funeral arrangements.
Marie Miller
Marie Leonard Miller - age: 62
(February 22, 1948 to July 28, 2010 )
Resident of Norwalk, Connecticut
Visitation Information:
A memorial service will be held Tuesday, August 3rd at 4:00 p.m. at Blessed Assurance Prayer Community, 175 White Plains Road, Trumbull, CT.
Marie L. Miller, age 62 of Norwalk, passed away in the home of her daughter on Wednesday, July 28th. She was the wife of the late Joseph A. Miller. Marie was also predeceased by her adoptive parents, Walter and Anna Leonard and sister, Patricia Pinder. Marie was born in Stamford, CT on February 22, 1948. She is survived by her daughter, Kimberly A. Stewart, her birth mother, Muriel Pinder, brothers James, Lee and Michael Pinder and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held Tuesday, August 3rd at 4:00 p.m. at Blessed Assurance Prayer Community, 175 White Plains Road, Trumbull, CT. The Magner Funeral Home, Norwalk is in charge of arrangements.
Joseph M. Corey, MD - age: 77
(May 18, 1933 to July 23, 2010 )
Resident of Southport, Connecticut
Visitation Information:
Calling hours are Monday, 4-8 p.m. at Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue, Norwalk, Conn. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday at 11 a.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 203 East Avenue, Norwalk.
Dr. Joseph M. Corey, a devoted husband and father, a long-time surgeon at Norwalk Hospital, and a fixture in the community since the days he marched with clarinet in the Norwalk High School Band, died Friday after a brief illness. He was 77.
An intensely thoughtful man with a keen sense of humor, Dr. Corey never took life for granted, living most days with a smile on his face.
Dr. Corey loved golf, listening to opera, reading history, and rooting for the Mets and the New York Giants. But mostly, Dr. Corey found joy in his family. He met his wife, Ellen Flatley, when he was a third-year medical student at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Brighton, Mass., where Ellen worked as a registered nurse.
They were married
51 years. Joe and Ellen had six daughters -- Mary Beth, Ann, Ellie, Julie, Jane and Jacqueline. Dr. Corey was the proud grandfather of eight, and all his grandchildren called him “Jidoo, ” the Lebanese term for grandfather, a tribute to his family heritage.
Since retiring from medical practice about six years ago, Dr. Corey spent much of his time traveling with his wife to see his grandchildren, who live in North Carolina, Chicago and San Diego. The entire Corey family gathered last year for a 50th wedding anniversary celebration in the Poconos, the place where Joe and Ellen spent their honeymoon.
Dr. Corey was also an avid woodworker and handyman and he relished a project, the more challenging the better. All of his daughters have at least one clock, step-stool, wagon or bookshelf hand-made by their dad. He also made bottle openers using screws and scrap pieces of oak wood, and the iconic “Doc Corey” beer bottle opener is a family staple.
Dr. Corey practiced surgery in Norwalk in partnership with Dr. John Piro for 32 years. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Award of the Department of Surgery in 1997.
Dr. Corey’s civic service included serving as President of the Class of 1951 at Norwalk High School, President of the Norwalk Rotary Club, President of the Norwalk Medical Society and President of Shorehaven Golf Club.
In a profile about Dr. Corey in The Norwalk Hour on July 30, 2001, Alexander Rissolo, a Norwalk dentist and close friend said “He’s a born leader. I’ve known him since junior high school and he’s always been a prince of a man.”
Dr. Corey was drafted into the army during the Vietnam War and served in Korea. In one of the family’s most touching stories, Dr. Corey was in Korea while his wife and the young girls were home in Norwalk. He tried everything possible to get his family to join him, and eventually succeeded. After days of anticipating their arrival and being disappointed by delays, the military transport plane finally arrived in Seoul, Korea, with that manifest that read “Corey, Corey, Corey, Corey, Corey, Corey.” Dr. Corey met his family on the tarmac and all the other soldiers on the plane cheered.
A graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass, Dr. Corey was on the dean’s list all four years. He wrote his thesis on something called “The Structure and Physiology of the Gall Bladder and Common Bile Duct in their Relation to Digestion.” He graduated Tufts University Medical School, and completed his internship and surgical residency at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, Mass.
Dr. Corey appreciated life perhaps more than most, as he suffered kidney failure about 10 years ago and, then, seven years ago, received a transplanted kidney from his daughter Ellie. All six daughters offered to be donors for their beloved dad.
With six daughters and no sons, Dr. Corey often heard the joking remark “you poor man, ” but those who were closest to him knew the truth: he couldn’t have been happier. One of Dr. Corey’s last activities was making traditional Lebanese stuffed grape leaves with his grandchildren.
Dr. Corey is survived by his wife of 51 years and the love of his life, Ellen Flatley Corey, originally from Brookline, Mass. Also by his daughters and sons-in-laws: Mary Beth Corey, of New York City and her companion Mark Dowd, of Milford, Conn; Ann Corey, of Des Plaines, Ill; Ellie Corey, and her husband Bill Hanrahan of New London, Conn; Julie Corey of Asheville, NC; Jane Corey Holt and her husband Doug Holt of Evanston, Ill; Jacqueline Corey Kennedy and her husband Bill Kennedy of San Diego, Calif.
His eight grandchildren are Colleen, Erin and Joseph Young of Asheville, NC; Corey, Noah and Dylan Holt of Evanston, Ill; and Jimmy and Clara Kennedy of San Diego, Calif.
He is also survived by his sisters Gloria Annitto of Glastonbury, Conn., and Lillian Nelson of Greenville, RI, and six nieces and nephews.
Dr. Corey is predeceased by his parents Joseph and Elizabeth (Hatton) Corey of Norwalk Connecticut, and his sister Marion “Babe” Uffie” Corey, also of Norwalk.
Calling hours are Monday, 4-8 p.m. at Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue, Norwalk, Conn. A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday at 11 a.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 203 East Avenue, Norwalk. The Celebrant will be Rev. Brian M. Flatley, Dr. Corey’s brother-in-law.
