His ears were a little big and the kids called him “Stinky.”
Those were some of the gems that came out of Friday night’s roast of Ansonia Mayor James Della Volpe.
Hundreds came to the event, which was held at St. Sebastian Hall and sponsored by the Ansonia Gridiron Club.
All proceeds will benefit Ansonia football.
Della Volpe, 62, is a lifelong resident of the city and serving his sixth term as mayor.
He underwent major heart surgery in February and has been out on medical leave since then.
Della Volpe, who has lost a good deal of weight during his recovery, is expected to return to work June 1. See the video for details.
Throughout the evening, several of Della Volpe’s colleagues and childhood friends shared memories and took some good natured jabs at his athletic, coaching and political careers.
Emcee John Sponheimer, a member of the club’ executive board and a former football coach with Della Volpe, zeroed in on Della Volpe’s bionic ears.
They’re so big, the mayor could hear what was happening in the stands, Sponheimer said, referencing an old photo of Della Volpe as proof.
“Now there is no doubt he had the best ears on the team,” he said.
Della Volpe was an assistant football coach at Ansonia High School from 1972 to 1999. He also served as an assistant coach for the basketball and baseball programs.
Della Volpe and his wife, Jane, have two sons: Duncan and Vince, and a grandson, James Joseph.
Even his son, Duncan, got in on the joking, saying his dad invented the remote control.
That is, he forced Duncan as a kid to stand and switch channels as Della Volpe decided what to watch.
Duncan also revealed some dark Della Volpe secrets — the mayor was a huge disco fan in the 70s.
“That was just Dell doing his thing,” he said.
The audience included Derby Mayor Anthony Saffieri, Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti, Seymour First Selectman Paul Roy, State Rep. Theresa Conway and former Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy.
Malloy, who is running for governor, broached the mayor’s medical problems.
You didn’t have to go “quite so far” to prove you had heart, Malloy said.
A childhood friend, Bill Bennet, now a district attorney in Massachusetts, said growing up the newspaper sports pages referred to the young Della Volpe as “Swink.”
However, Bennet said the kids on Prospect Street had a better nickname — “Stink,” he said, breaking the audience into laughter.
