By Ronald P. Coderre
The 2019 TriTown American Legion Baseball team season is on the horizon and again this year the program will feature three teams.  As the tryouts concluded the Senior team and the two Junior teams filled their rosters with 14 players on each squad.
According to executive officer Michael Merrill, the coaching staffs are set with Jason Akana handling the Senior team and Brian Murphy returning to coach the Junior Blue unit.  Lee Blanchette steps in for his initial season at the helm of the Junior Red team.
“The TriTown teams are fortunate to have the services of three solid baseball men coaching these young players.  All three men are leader with a vast knowledge of the game and are poised to teach our players the fundamentals as well as guiding them with values that go beyond the diamond,” said Merrill.
Akana, who is in the Tourtellotte and Worcester State University Athletic Halls of Fame, brings a wealth of baseball knowledge and experience to the program.  The Tourtellotte graduate enters his second season as the head mentor of the Senior team after serving two seasons as an assistant.  Last season Akana, who played three seasons for TriTown under legendary coach Tom Auclair, led the Towners to a respectable 15-12 record.
In addition to playing for Tourtellotte and TriTown, Akana played one season at Manchester Community College on a team that went to the Junior College World Series where they lost in the title contest.  While at Worcester State, Akana was the leading hitter in the country in Division III in his senior year.
Dan Zanauskas and Brian Barylski will once again serve as Akana’s assistant coaches.
Blanchette, who is a graduate of St. John’s Prep in Shrewsbury, Mass., is in his second season as a TriTown coach and his first as a head coach.  After serving as the assistant on the Blue Team last season, the Duquesne University grad, who played three seasons for the Dukes, is looking forward to his initial season as a head coach of the Junior Red squad.  He played his Legion baseball for West Boylston Post #204 for three seasons.
This spring Blanchette took over the reins of the Tourtellotte Memorial High School team and turned the program around, posting a 12-8 log.  Blanchette’s Tigers qualified for the CIAC State Tournament, the first time in more than 15 years that the phenomenon has occurred.
Assisting Blanchette this season is a pair of well-known Thompson baseball minds, Bill Steglitz and Rob L’Heureux.
Murphy, whose name is well known in baseball circles well beyond northeastern Connecticut, is in his second season as the head coach of Junior Blue team, which narrowly missed qualifying for the postseason last year.  This spring Murphy, who is in his third season as the varsity coach at Woodstock Academy, led the Centaurs to a 12-12 record and a trip to the CIAC postseason tournament.
The left-handed Murphy is one of the best southpaws to come out of northeastern Connecticut.  After starring on the mound at Tourtellotte and for TriTown, he went on to an All-American career at Eastern Connecticut State University and was drafted by the New York Yankees upon graduation.  He played two seasons of professional baseball in Paintsville, Ky., and Greensboro, N.C., where he posted an overall record of 12-4 with 30 saves.  He went on to a stellar 29-year career with the State of Connecticut as the Commissioner of Corrections.
Murphy’s assistant coaches are Eric Livingston and Chris Hehir.
According to Merrill, the teams open play this week.  The Senior squad will once again play its games at Tourtellotte Memorial High School while the Junior teams’ home field is the Bentley Athletic Complex in Woodstock.   
Updates on the progress of all three teams will be heard weekly on WINY Radio.  Members of the coaching staffs and players will appear each week on Wednesday mornings at 7:25 a.m. thanks to the support of The Crossings Restaurant and Brew Pub of Putnam.

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Joyce A. Albro
POMFRET CENTER — Joyce A. Albro, 87, of Pomfret Center, died June 8, 2019, at Day Kimball Hospital in Putnam. She was the wife of Leon C. Albro Jr. He died Oct. 27, 1985.
Joyce was born June 18, 1931, in Putnam, daughter of the late Frederick Patrick and Olive E. Baker Noon.
Joyce worked at the Pomfret Town Hall as a bookkeeper and secretary. Joyce also worked at the Pomfret Community School as a teacher’s aide. She retired at the age of 75.  
Joyce enjoyed cooking and baking. She was known for her cookies and apple pies.  
She was a communicant of Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Hampton. She had a great interest in genealogy and spent many years tracing her Irish roots. She was a member of the Connecticut Society of Genealogists and of the Killingly Historical & Genealogical Society.  She cared for “her” cat Susie, whose behavior she graded at the end of most days.
She leaves her daughter Mary E. Albro; her brother Alan F. Noon; nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband, father and mother, her daughter Patricia Lee-Ann McLaughlin, her siblings Frederick “Bub” Noon Jr., Lillian A. Rose, Robert B. Noon and Gerald Noon.
Visitation will be from 9 to 10:15 a.m. June 15 at Smith and Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11 in the Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Cedar Swamp Road, Hampton. Burial follows in Abington Cemetery. Donations: Our Lady of Lourdes Church, PO Box 211, Brooklyn, CT 06234.

Joan M. Farquharson
DANIELSON — Joan Marie Farquharson, 75, of Danielson died unexpectedly June 5, 2019, at home.
She was the wife of Larry Farquharson. He died in 2007. They were married Feb. 10, 1968.
Born Dec. 4, 1943, in Warwick, R.I., she was the daughter of the late Joseph and Rita (Reid) Imbeau.
Joan worked for Fisher’s Big Wheel and C and M. She was a communicant of St. James Church in Danielson. Joan was a very selfless and caring individual that enjoyed helping others.  She was proud of her family and her dog Mikey. Joan enjoyed shopping with her best friend, Gloria.
She leaves her children Stacy McRae of N. Kingston, R.I., Cynthia Scott of Danielson, Michael Farquharson (Jennifer) of Danielson, Marcia Hagget of Dayville, David Farquharson (Robyn) of Manchester; 12 grandchildren, six great-grandchildren; close friend Gloria Buskey. She was predeceased by her brother Raymond Imbeau.
The Mass of Christian Burial was June 10 at St. James Church, with burial in Holy Cross Cemetery, Danielson. Donations: American Diabetes Association, 306 Industrial Park Road, Suite 105, Middletown, CT 06457. Gagnon and Costello Funeral Home, 33 Reynolds St., Danielson.

Darlene Pendleton
DAYVILLE — Darlene Francis Pendleton, 60, of Dayville, died June 7, 2019, after a battle with cancer. She is reunited in heaven with her husband of 27 years Wayne Pendleton, who died in 2004.
Born April 29, 1959, in Putnam, she was the daughter of the late Arthur and Cecile (Thibeault) Martin.
Darlene had an associate’s degree in human services and worked with people with special disabilities, mental and physical. She was a director of Killingly Day Care for several years. She had a passion for gardening. Darlene loved the beach, going out to eat. She was always spunky, charismatic and a bit of a jokester, still playing tricks on the nurses until her last days. She loved spending time with her dog Kelsey and her best friend Joan.
She leaves her daughters Jennifer Farquharson (Michael) of Danielson, Shelby Pendleton and her significant other Oda Sirimongkhoune of Brooklyn; sisters Brenda Pavao (Van) of N. Stonington, Deborah Lehto (Paul) of Brooklyn; four grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, significant other Tom Chmura. She was predeceased by a sister Helena Martin.
A Graveside Service was June 12 at Holy Cross Cemetery, Danielson. Donations:  American Cancer Society, 825 Brook St., I-91 Tech Ctr, Rocky Hill, CT 06067-3045. Gagnon and Costello Funeral Home, 33 Reynolds St., Danielson.

Aaron Charles Stark
WOODSTOCK — Aaron Charles Stark, 27, died unexpectedly of natural causes on May 26, 2019, at Harrington Healthcare at Webster in Webster.  Born in 1992 in Providence, he was the son of James Erik and Dana Penn Stark.
Aaron was an artist, printmaker and teacher.  He was an alumnus of Woodstock Academy and earned his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Rhode Island.
He leaves his parents and his sister Anja Stark of Woodstock.
A Celebration of Aaron’s Life will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. June 30 at The Stomping Ground, 132 Main St., Putnam.  A charity will be selected for memorial contributions at a later time. Gilman Funeral Home and Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam.

Maurice Thibodeau
BROOKLYN — Maurice Thibodeau, 83, of Stetson Rd., died June 4, 2019, at home.   Born in 1935 in Caribou, Maine, he was the son of the late Alcide and Edna (Bossie) Thibodeau. Maurice was a graduate of the University of Southern California where he received his bachelor’s in engineering.
Mr. Thibodeau worked for more than 30 years at Pratt and Whitney Aircraft as an engineer building jet engines for Boeing aircraft. Maurice was a family-oriented man and cherished the time that he spent with his nieces and nephews whether it was tutoring them in their academic studies or helping them move. He also enjoyed traveling with his longtime companion Jan.
He leaves a son, Scott Thibodeau of Owasso, Okla.; a sister, Jean Vallad of Michigan:  grandchildren, nieces, and nephews; true friends Don Nash and his wife. He was predeceased by his son, Greg Thibodeau; two brothers, Alcide and Irvin “Steve” Thibodeau; and his longtime companion Jan.
Gilman Funeral Home & Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam.

Norman C. Berube
N. GROSVENORDALE — Norman C. Berube, 66, died June 7, 2019, at the Christopher House, Worcester.  He was the husband of the late Dorothy C. (Courtemanche) Berube who died in 2018.
He was the son of Stella (Paradis) Berube Brodeur and the late Leo Berube living in N. Grosvenordale all of his life.  He drove for Mayflower Trucking and most recently was a maintenance technician for Superior Bakery in N. Grosvenordale. He enjoyed restoring cars and was an avid car enthusiast, owning many cars and motorcycles. He had his private pilot’s license. He played guitar and in his younger years he had a band called Soundtrack.  
He leaves two daughters, Amie Tworzydlo (Bryan) of Killingly and Heather Martinez of Thompson; three brothers; Richard of Stafford Springs, Bert of Thompson and William of N. Grosvenordale; one sister Suzanne Rousseau of Greene, Maine; two grandsons, Joseph and Jacob Tworzydlo; his mother, Stella (Paradis) Brodeur of Thompson. He was predeceased by a sister, Nanette Berube.
The time and date for a memorial gathering will be announced. Shaw-Majercik Funeral Home, Webster.

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Honoring
Recently members of Fire and Iron Motorcycle Club Station 159 Quinebaug placed firefighter memorial flag at local cemeteries to honor all the past member of the Putnam Fire Dept. We wanted to show our appreciation to the former members before us and thank them for their service to their department. The group also replaced several flags that needed replacement. All the flags were retrieved to be saved until next Memorial Day weekend.  Fire and Iron Motorcycle Club is a firefighter motorcycle club made up of firefighters from the local community. If interested in learning about more about Fire and Iron MC contact Joe Farrington at 860-753-0945 or email  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Courtesy photo.


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