Miscellaneous Fairfield County, CT Obituaries

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Rita Boyer Kovacs 
2001-11-10
Rita Boyer Kovacs, 86, of Bethel and Newtown, died Thursday afternoon at Mediplex in Danbury. She was born in Holyoke, Mass., on June 23, 1915, the daughter of Theodore and Viola Boyer. 

She is survived by her husband, E. Paul Kovacs of Danbury, and her sister, Claire Bookwalter of Colorado. She is predeceased by her brother, Wilmer Boyer of Danbury. 

She also is survived by her sons, Paul J. Kovacs of Montana, Jerome P. Kovacs of Brookfield, Kenneth W. Kovacs and daughter-in-law Karen Kovacs of Bethel, and her daughters, Karen K. Parks of New Milford and Rita Weller of Danbury. 

She also is survived by her eight grandchildren, Kirsten Kovacs-Hardy, Adrienne Qui, Jennifer Kovacs, Jeremy Kovacs, Jessica Junger, Melissa Parks, Amanda Parks and Edward Weller; her two great-grandchildren, Jenna and Justin Qui; and several nieces and nephews. 

Rita graduated from Holyoke High School and moved to the Danbury area in 1933. She worked in Woolworth’s and the Mallory Hat Factory before her marriage to E. Paul Kovacs in 1936. 

With her husband, she started and was actively involved in the family’s general construction and gravel business while raising her children in the ’40s and ’50s. 

She was a past member of the Ridgewood Country Club where she was an accomplished golfer and avid bowler. 

Rita had a zest for life and an energy for raising her family. She was her own person and had a sense of humor. 

She will be sadly missed by all and will be lovingly remembered for her selfless generosity to all who knew her. 

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Mary Church, Bethel, on Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. Burial will follow in St. Peter Cemetery, Danbury. Friends may call at the Green Funeral Home, 57 Main St., Danbury, on Tuesday afternoon and evening from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. 

Contributions, in Mrs. Kovacs’ memory, may be made to St. Mary School, 24 Dodgingtown Road, Bethel, CT 06801.
 

Marilyn Sutay
2001-11-10
 

Marilyn M. Sutay, age 77, of West Redding, formerly of Bridgeport and Monroe, died on Friday morning at the Bethel Health Care Center, Bethel. She was the wife of George J. Sutay. 

Mrs. Sutay was born in Bridgeport, October 7, 1924, a daughter of the late Edwin and Jane (Beers) Myers. She grew up and graduated from schools in Bridgeport and was a graduate of the Butler Business School. 

Early in her life, Mrs. Sutay was employed as a telephone operator, and also was employed by several Bridgeport companies. She and her husband of 55 years have been residents of West Redding since 1965, and had previously resided in both Bridgeport and Monroe. 

An avid ballroom dancer, Mrs. Sutay and her husband enjoyed their Saturday evenings out, attending ballroom dancing functions throughout Connecticut. 

Friends will be received at the Bethel Funeral Home, 215 Greenwood Avenue, Bethel, on Sunday afternoon from 2 through 5 p.m., with prayer services to be held at 4:30 p.m. 

Burial will be on Monday, November 12th, at the Park Cemetery, Bridgeport, at 11 a.m.
 

William H. Mills
2001-11-10
William Henry Mills, age 62, beloved husband of Helen Mills, passed away early Friday morning at Danbury Hospital. He was a longtime Bethel resident. 

He was born in Norwalk, CT, on May 27, 1939, a son of the late Samuel and Cecelia Mills. Mr. Mills was retired from the Town of Bethel, where he worked at the Highway Department for 29 years. 

Beside his wife of 40 years, he is survived by 2 sons: William Mills, Jr. and his wife Theresa of Danbury; and Richard Mills and his wife Linda of Bethel; 3 daughters: Helen Mills and her fiancee George Marsh of Bethel, Mary Roberts and her husband John of New Milford, and Harriet Channey and her husband Eric of Bethel; 4 brothers: Nick Mills and John Mills, both of Norwalk, George Mills of Danbury and Samuel Mills of Bridgeport; 2 sisters: Mary Lou Stratton of Norwalk and Florence Shutes of Norwich; 6 grandchildren: John Roberts, Jr., Michael Roberts, Billy Roberts, Courtney Mills, Emily Mills and William Mills III. 

The funeral services will be held on Tuesday, November 13, 2001, at 10:00 at the Bethel Funeral Home, 215 Greenwood Ave., Bethel. Burial will be in Wooster Cemetery, Danbury. 

The family will receive friends on Monday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at the funeral home. 

At the request of the family, contributions may be made to the family.
 

Gertrude Popp
2001-11-10
Gertrude (Waterhouse) Popp, 75, of 3 Grove Place, Danbury, wife of the late Ralph J. Popp, died on Thursday, November 8, 2001 at the Danbury Hospital. 

Mrs. Popp was born in Norwalk, August 7, 1926, a daughter of the late John and Ottile (Artman) Waterhouse. She attended Norwalk schools. 

In years past, Mrs. Popp was a candy counter clerk in the H&L Green 5&10 Store of Norwalk. 

A resident of Danbury for the past 38 years coming from Norwalk, she was a member of the Immanuel Lutheran Church of Danbury. 

A son, Robert A. Popp of Danbury; two daughters, Rosemary Kurensky of Norwalk and Karen M. Popp of Danbury; a brother, John Waterhouse of Canaan, CT; a sister, Alice Neville of Danbury; four granddaughters; two grandsons; twelve great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews survive her. 

Two sons, Ralph J. Popp and Thomas E. Popp, and a sister, Mildred Ezzo-Salerno predeceased Mrs. Popp. 

Funeral services will take place on Monday morning at 10:30 a.m. in the Jowdy-Kane Funeral Home, 9-11 Granville Avenue, Danbury, with Pastor Daniel Wehmeier of the Immanuel Lutheran Church officiating. 

Burial will follow in Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery, Danbury. 

Friends will be received in the Jowdy-Kane Funeral Home on Sunday from 3 to 6 p.m. 

Memorials in Mrs. Popp’s memory may be made to the Step of Faith Program, Immanuel Lutheran Church, 26 West Street, Danbury, CT 06810.
 

Gloria Mastre Kastelic
2001-11-10
Gloria Mastre Kastelic, age 73, of 6 Indian Ridge Road, New Milford, wife of Frank Kastelic, died suddenly Thursday at New Milford Hospital. 

Mrs. Kastelic was born in New York City, Jan. 25, 1928, a daughter of the late John and Theresa Cirelli Mastre. 

She had lived in New Milford since 1983. She was last employed at Kimberly-Clark Corp in New Milford before her retirement. 

She was a communicant of Our Lady of the Lakes Church in New Milford. 

Besides her husband, she is survived by a son, Guido Maggi Jr. of New Milford; two daughters, Dirce Murphy of Bethel and Doris Marrett of Waterbury; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. 

Funeral services will be on Monday at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of the Lakes Church, New Milford, with a Mass of Christian Burial. Interment will be in Center Cemetery, New Milford. Friends may call at the Lillis Funeral. Home, 58 Bridge St., New Milford, on Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m.
 

Deaths
2001-11-10
ARMSTRONG, Diane, 67, of Sacramento, Calif., Nov. 3, 2001. F: Memorial Mass, Saturday, Nov. 10, St. Peter’s Church, Main Street, Danbury. 

BLOOM, Alice J., 88, of Brewster, N.Y., Oct. 20, 2001. No calling hours. F: Memorial service, Monday, 11 a.m., at the funeral home. (Beecher Funeral Home, Brewster, N.Y.) 

KASTELIC, Gloria Mastre, 73, of 6 Indian Ridge Road, New Milford, Nov. 8, 2001. CH: Sunday, 6 to 8 p.m. F: Monday, 10 a.m., Our Lady of the Lakes Church, New Milford. (Lillis Funeral Home, New Milford) 

LINDSAY, Viola, of Redding, Nov. 7, 2001. F: Saturday, 1 p.m., at Georgetown Bible Church, Georgetown. (Bouton Funeral Home, Georgetown) 

POPP, Gertrude Waterhouse, 75, of 3 Grove Place, Danbury, Nov. 8, 2001. CH: Sunday, 3 to 6 p.m. F: Monday, 10:30 a.m., in the funeral home. (Jowdy-Kane Funeral Home, Danbury) 

SUTAY, Marilyn M., 77, of Redding, formerly of Bridgeport and Monroe, Nov. 9, 2001. CH: Sunday, 2 to 5 p.m., with prayer services at 4:30 p.m. F: Monday, Park Cemetery, 11 a.m., Bridgeport. (Bethel Funeral Home) 

WARDELL, Ellen Eichler, of New Fairfield, Nov. 7, 2001. F: Tuesday, noon, St. Edward the Confessor Church, New Fairfield. (Green Funeral Home, Danbury) 
 

CH: Calling hours. F: Funeral services.
 

Burton W. Kanter 
2001-11-09
Burton W. Kanter, an innovative tax attorney, investor, teacher, writer and prominent member of the Chicago arts community died at his home in Highland Park, Illinois, on October 31 after an eighteen-month battle with cancer. For over forty years, Kanter distinguished himself through his revolutionary tax work and his commitment to education and philanthropy. 

Throughout his career he earned the admiration and respect of his friends, clients, colleagues and adversaries alike. 

Kanter was born on August 12, 1930, in Jersey City, NJ. He grew up in Danbury where his father ran a ladies’ clothing business. A gifted student, he graduated early from high school and was accepted at the University of Chicago, where, in 1952, after five years, he had earned his undergraduate and law degrees. In 1951 he married his hometown sweetheart, Naomi Krakow, and after graduation the couple lived for a year in Bloomington, IN, where Kanter taught law at the University of Indiana. After a stint in Washington, DC, working as an advisor to the U.S. Tax Court, the Kanters settled back in Chicago where Mr. Kanter went into private practice in 1956. Later, he was one of the founding partners in what eventually became the Chicago firm of Neal, Gerber, and Eisenberg. Kanter remained of counsel with the firm until the spring of 2000, shortly after his cancer diagnosis. Throughout his career in taxation, Kanter’s clients included the likes of the Pritzker family, Hugh Hefner, Charles Dolan, Sam Zell, Saul Zaentz, Bobby Hull and many others. 

Not wanting to sacrifice his academic focus while in private practice, Kanter, in the late 1950s, became an editor of “Shop Talk” in the Journal of Taxation, a forum for high level discussion among tax professionals. He remained associated with that publication until this year. Kanter also taught a tax course at the University of Chicago Law School for approximately 15 years, giving it up only when his health deteriorated. 

In 1953, as an early example of his inquisitive nature, Kanter challenged as unfair a state’s right to tax military personnel based on residency of their assigned post. That effort led to a commitment to innovative thinking that was evidenced in over 100 articles authored by Kanter over the course of his career. 

Throughout the 1960s and 70s he turned his curious eye to the tax paying and financing needs of various industries. He was a key player in the initial years of Chicago’s venerable Second City and the Chicago International Film Festival. He was involved with rock bands such as Santana and Creedence Clearwater Revival and with movies such as “Papillon,” “The Longest Yard,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” He was also instrumental in the founding and financing of such companies as Cablevision Systems, Ticketmaster and First Health Group. In the real estate arena, Kanter was deeply involved in the development of Mullet Bay, the first major resort to be built on the Caribbean island of St. Maarten. 

In the 1950s, as newlyweds with little money to spend, the Kanters began to collect art. They began modestly. In fact, Kanter once fashioned a series of frames for wallpaper samples he bought for 25 cents, in order to have “art” for the bare walls of their apartment. Through the family-controlled Art Enterprises Ltd., the collection eventually grew to over 1,000 works of art, including masterworks of the 20th century by artists such as Pollock, Motherwell, Dubuffet, Kline, Francis, Rosenquist, Miro, Nevelson, Derain Louis, Arp and Hofmann. Art Enterprises is a sponsor of a number of art tours and often loans certain of its holdings to museum exhibitions across the country. 

By the 1980s, the Kanters had centralized their philanthropic activities through the Kanter Family Foundation that has donated generously over the years to various organizations and causes. Major beneficiaries of the Foundation’s activities have included the Museum of Contemporary Art, where Kanter was a long standing member of the Board of Trustees, and the Law School of the University of Chicago, where the Foundation has funded a chair in honor of Kanter’s teacher and mentor, Walter Blum. 

Kanter is survived by his wife, Naomi Kanter; his brothers, Carl Kanter and Jerry Kanter; his children Joel (Ricki), Janis (Tom McCormick) and Joshua (Catherine); and his five grandchildren. A sixth grandchild is due in December. 

Services were held Friday, November 2, at Chicago Sinai Congregation. The temple is located at 15 W. Delaware Place in Chicago. In lieu of flowers the family requests donation, to be made to a charity of choice.
 

Philip J. Forbes Jr. 
2001-11-09
Mr. Philip J. Forbes Jr., of 123 Legend Hill Rd., passed away at home on Monday Nov. 5, 2001. Mr. Forbes was born in Brooklyn, NY, son of Philip and Mary Ellen Forbes. He was predeceased by his wife, Betty, and son, Philip J Forbes III. He is survived by two daughters, Linda May Lawson and Nancy May L’Heureux, both of Madison. He is also survived by three grandchildren, Dawn Threlfall of Morris and Philip Forbes IV of Oxford and Kimberly Forbes of Bethel. He is survived by three great grandchildren Lauren Marie Foster, Ryan Thomas Threlfall and Kyle Thomas Threlfall of Morris, CT. He is survived by his sister, Ruth Tibbetts of Danbury, and brother, Rev. Alan Forbes of Boca Raton, Fla. 

Mr. Forbes graduated from Amherst College class of 1935 and is a World War II Veteran. He is served with the U.S. Army in Germany. He owned Forbes Radio & TV in Bethel for many years before retiring to Madison. 

Funeral arrangements are being made by New Haven Funeral Services, (203) 777-2309, There will be a memorial service and burial at King Street Church, King Street, Danbury, on Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. His brother, the Rev. Alan Forbes will be assisting in the funeral services. Friends and family welcomed.
 

Viola S. Lindsay 
2001-11-09
Viola S. Lindsay, a resident of Redding since 1960, died on Wednesday (November 7) at her home following an extended illness. She was the wife of Willard O. Lindsay, Sr. 

Mrs. Lindsay was born in Brooklyn, NY, the daughter of the late George and Minnie Freda Fauth Boyle. Her family came from Donegal County, Ireland. 

She was a homemaker and attended the Georgetown Bible Church. 

In addition to her husband, Mrs. Lindsay was the beloved mother of five sons, Frank Lindsday of Cape Coral, FL, Willard Lindsay Jr. of Fort Myers, FL, George Lindsay of Naugatuck, CT, John Lindsay of Kent, CT, and Lucas Lindsay of Danbury, CT; four daughters, Alyceanne Martins of Ocala, FL, Grace Erickson of Norwalk, CT, Viola Ross of Woodstock, GA, and Bethe Harding of Danbury, CT; sixteen grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her sister, Ann Alberts, and her brother, George Boyle. 

Viola will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed by all her family and her husband of fifty-five years. 

Services will be held Saturday (November 10) at 1 p.m. in the Georgetown Bible Church, located at the corner of Route 107 and North Main Street in Georgetown. The interment will follow in Umpawaug Cemetery, West Redding. 

Friends may call at the Georgetown Bible Church on Friday (November 9) from 4 to 8 p.m. 

Donations in memory of Viola Lindsay may be made to the West Redding Volunteer Fire Department, P.O., Box 9, Redding, CT 06896. 

Arrangements are by the Bouton Funeral Home, 31 West Church Street, Georgetown.
 

Deaths
2001-11-09
ARMSTRONG, Diane, 67, of Sacramento, Calif., Nov. 3, 2001. F: Saturday, St. Peter’s Church, Danbury. 

ESTERHELD, Mary Elizabeth “Betty,” 80, of Danbury, Nov. 4, 2001 No calling hours F: Friday, 10 a.m., Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Danbury (Green Funeral Home, Danbury) 

HENNESSEY, Victoria T., 79, formerly of Georgetown/Weston, Nov. 4, 2001 CH: Friday, 7 to 9 p.m. F: Saturday, 10 a.m., Sacred Heart Church, Georgetown (Bouton Funeral Home, Georgetown) 

KOVACS, Rita (Boyer), of Danbury, Nov. 8, 200l. Arrangements to be announced by Green Funeral Home of Danbury. 

LESHURE, Evan. Mother Creona, of 36 W. Wooster St., Danbury, Nov. 4, 2001. CH: Friday, 11 a.m. to noon, New Hope Baptist Church, Danbury. F: Friday, noon, at the church. 

LINDSAY, Viola, of West Redding, Nov. 7, 2001. CH: Friday, 4 to 8 p.m. at Georgetown Bible Church F: Saturday, Nov. 10, 1 p.m., at Georgetown Bible Church, Georgetown. (Bouton Funeral Home, Georgetown) 

POPP, Gertrude (Waterhouse), 75, of 3 Grove Place, Danbury, Nov. 8, 2001. Arrangements to be announced by Jowdy-Kane Funeral Home of Danbury. 


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