Six alumni and friends of St. Mary-St. Michael Elementary School in Derby will be recognized Saturday, March 28, 2015 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Villa Bianca in Seymour.
A keepsake program book is being produced and advertisements, congratulatory and “in memoriam” messages are available by contacting the school office.
The admission cost is $40 per person with tables of ten available at a cost of $350.
Reservations are requested by March 21, 2015 and can be made by contacting Mrs. Coppola at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or (203) 735‑6471.
The honorees are:
Helen Ploski:
Born in Ansonia on Sept. 13, 1919, Helen is the daughter of Anna and Vincent Novinsky. Her parents were Russian immigrants and she was the fourth of five children.
She had two brothers, Alexander and John Novinsky , and two sisters, Mary Brenia Prokopchyk and Dorothy Behun.
Helen attended Ansonia schools and graduated from Ansonia High and worked as a crane operator at Farrell Birmingham during World War II.
Helen married Anthony Ploski on Aug. 1, 1942.
They had three children, Anthony Jr., Patricia Walania and Bernadette Swanson.
Helen has six grandchildren and three great-grandkids who are scattered all over the country in New Jersey, Missouri, Washington, Illinois and Connecticut.
Helen’s three children and one grandson graduated St. Michael’s School and two grandchildren are graduating St. Mary – St. Michael’s. A grandson was in the first graduating class of the combined schools.
Helen is a long time member of St. Michael’s Parish and a member of its choir.
She also belonged to the Ladies Guild. Helen is also an active member of the Polish Falcons of America. She was awarded the highest honor from that group, the Legion of Honor.
Helen also belongs to the Catholic War Veterans of Derby and still helps out at bingo at the West Haven Vets Hospital and the Mother’s Day Flower Sale.
She also attends the Derby Senior Center several days a week and for many years helped serve lunches there and was recognized by TEAM for her efforts.
Helen is a very busy lady who loves music, plays, UCONN and Notre Dame men’s and women’s basketball teams. Her family calls her “the Valley’s Energizer Bunny.”
Pat Knott:
Pat is a graduate of Assumption School in Ansonia, Derby High School, and Teikyo Post College in Waterbury.
He is the owner of Conn-Professional Water Services in Seymour and previously served as director of construction services for Birmingham Water Utilities and director and founder of Birmingham H2O Services.
He is a member of the St. Mary Knights of Columbus Council 14611 and has volunteered for many committees and organizations, including the St. Mary Church Task Force. He was the co-chair of the St. Mary Parish Summer Festival.
Pat was the “go-to” guy when St. Mary-St. Michael School converted from oil to gas heat. This moved has saved the school thousands of dollars in heating costs.
John Anglace
John is married to the former Theresa M. Palazza for 59 years and is the father of Sandra A. Kennington (Thomas) of Dallas, GA and John L. Anglace (Candis) of Seymour, CT.
They have five grandchildren.
John was born in Ansonia and raised in Derby. He attended St. Mary’s Church and St. Mary’s School where he served in the choir and as an alter boy.
He is a 1945 graduate of St. Mary’s School and a 1950 graduate of Bullard-Havens Technical School.
He is a 1960 graduate of the University of Bridgeport, where he majored in industrial relations.
John is a U.S. Army veteran, having served in Germany.
John has over 40 years domestic and international experience in private sector labor relations.
He retied after 28 years service with Pfizer Inc, the world’s largest pharmaceutical company.
He has been a resident of Shelton since 1967 and has held the following positions in Shelton’s city government:
- City Welfare Director
- Chairman, Board of Apportionment & Taxation
- Has served on the Board of Aldermen for 24 years
- President of the Board of Aldermen for 20 years
John is an alumnus of Troop 3, Boy Scouts of America, and has been active in the Boy Scouts for over 50 years. He is a recipient of the Good Scout and the Silver Beaver Awards from the Housatonic Council, BSA.
He has been a communicant of St. Margaret Mary Church since 1967.
An avid golfer, John is a 25 year member of the Heritage Village Golf Club.
Jeff Heitman
Jeff was born and raised in Derby.
He is a 1985 graduate of St. Mary’s School. He graduated from Derby High School in 1989.
He began working at Porch and Patio at a young age and built up an extensive knowledge of the business. His experience and hard work led to the opportunity to take ownership in 2010.
Jeff is an active member of the community, and supports various charities and youth organizations throughout the area.
He annually donates to the school’s Duck Race and this past year donated many Christmas trees and hundreds of Christmas ornaments, figurines, wreaths and decorations to the school’s Christmas Festival of Trees fundraiser.
He is married to Irene Heitmann, and they are proud parents of four children.
They live in Milford.
Donna and Chris Carloni
Chris graduated from Derby High School in 1987 and is employed by the City of Derby WPCA.
He serves on the Board of Apportionment and Taxation and the Capital Planning Commission.
He was also on the building committee for the Derby Middle School, an assistant coach for Derby’s girls basketball team (city league), Justice of the Peace and a prior member of the Board of Apportionment & Taxation (2005 – 2009).
He is a parishioner of St. Mary’s Church and is a member of the Knight of Columbus.
Chris is the head basketball coach for the school’s girls varsity team and also serves as the athletic director.
Donna graduated from St. Mary’s School class of 1985 and graduated from Derby High School in 1989.
She received her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Sacred Heart University and is currently employed as a senior accountant at Richemont N.A.
Donna is also a parishioner at St. Mary’s Church, serves on church finance board and teaches second grade CCD. She is a former member of the Derby Board of Alderman, Derby Pop Warner cheerleading coach, board member of the school HSA, co-chaired silent auctions, talent shows, festival of trees and bingo.
Chris and Donna volunteer at the church summer festivals, manage events for Holy Thursday mass, coordinate flowers for Easter and Christmas, and arrange the crosses in front of the church.
Together they are responsible for running monthly fundraising dinners, the bingo kitchen, and a year-end sports banquet.
They have been married for 19 years and have two daughters: Amelia, who graduated from St. Mary-St. Michael School in 2013, and Cristina, who will be graduating from the school in June 2015.
St. Mary-St. Michael School was created in 1988 when St. Mary School (est. 1898) and St. Michael School (est. 1915) merged to form one school.
