September 2007

Notes From the Old Noank Jail

James Abbruzzese Remembered

by Ed Johnson

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Recently, we received word that a local businessman, volunteer fireman and community supporter, James Abbruzzese, had passed away at his vacation home in Florida. The news came as a sad loss for those of us living in this area who knew the family so well

Jimmy was a good friend for many years. When my wife and I first moved to this area in the ’70’s, both he and Orion Ford were the ones who persuaded me to join them in the Noank Volunteer Fire Department. I used to joke that I would never forgive either of them for doing that. Jimmy ran the Universal Package Store in Noank very successfully for many years, knew his wines quite well, but was not a heavy drinker himself. When I myself decided to stop drinking alcohol years ago, I warned Jimmy that he would probably have to declare chapter 11 or close the store, but he somehow managed to stay in business without my help.

My fondest memories of Jimmy involved his annual support of the Noank Band Concerts. A group of us would get together under his leadership and do a very large cookout in the Noank Park to raise money for the Band. The efforts involved were considerable in terms of the preparation but sometimes there were complications with the open grills not cooking the chickens thoroughly enough. The birds would be scorched or burnt on the outside but still raw inside, much to the displeasure of our clientele, who would claim some of the chickens were trying to walk off their plates.

Jimmy then went to the trouble of precooking the chicken at various establishments, including the kitchen of the Noank Baptist Church. However, the floor once became a chicken grease skating rink for the Minister, who did an impromptu ballerina act but was not very pleased to suddenly end up, himself, directly on the floor. Jimmy therefore sought other locations and, with the help of Bruce Main, Dennis Buttermore and Barbara Ecklemeyer, we ended up using the old Abbott’s Cannery facility in New London, which worked quite well.

If nothing else, the birds didn’t walk off the plates anymore.

In general, it is safe to say that it was rare to see a local community project where Jimmy wasn’t somehow involved or a fire scene when he wasn’t one of the drivers or firemen. It was rare not to see a smile on his face or a friendly laugh at somebody’s silly jokes (such as my own) and it was very obvious that he enjoyed working and helping other people. In later years, Jimmy developed some health issues that slowed him up considerably, but thanks to his wife, Joan, with her care and persistence, he remained as a guiding spirit for many of us for the rest of his life.

May God bless James Abbruzzese for being who he was…for all of us.