Charles Joseph “Chuck” Matusovich, age 69, husband to Gail (Renker) Matusovich and resident of Southbury for 43 years, entered into eternal rest October 18. He was born September 12, 1942 in Derby, son of the late Charles Paul & Jane (Borkowski) Matusovich. He graduated from Ansonia High School in 1959 and from the University of Bridgeport with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1963. Chuck was a parishioner of The Church of the Assumption in Ansonia and retired from Sikorsky Aircraft in 2008 after 44 years, where he was the manager of materials and process engineering. He is known as a pioneer for the many titanium dynamic components on H‑60/H‑53/S‑76 aircraft.
He loved his home on Cape Cod and his camp in Maine where he spent time fishing, clamming and having fun with his family. He was a man of many hobbies: beekeeping, maple syruping, gardening, fishing, tractor rebuilding, running his beagles, grafting and growing fruit trees and many more. The experience wrought from his many projects made him “The answer man” for the whole family. When you had a problem he always had the answer and it was usually right.
Charles took his job as a dad seriously and he shared in each of his children’s activities along the way. He was a coach for the Southbury Youth Baseball League and an assistant coach with the Cheshire Youth Hockey team. He could be found at Pop Warner Football games, softball games, field hockey games, swim meets and dance recitals
He played hard but he also worked hard. His job as a Dad was always top priority and he rarely brought his professional life home with him but he was well-respected by his colleagues both at Sikorsky and across the broader field of aerospace metallurgy. He was a titanium expert and his peers have described him with words like “pioneer” and “visionary” in his field.
But the center of his life was his wife, Gail. Together since high school and happily married for 47 years they worked side by side on every project he started. They traveled to all but five of the fifty states, and especially enjoyed visiting the National Parks.
When you needed him he was there. When he smiled you could see it in his eyes and his mouth. He loved hearing stories of the lives of those around him. . He continued to be actively involved in his grandchildren’s lives. He was always ready for them with a joke and he enjoyed watching their music and dance recitals and sports games.
In addition to his wife, he leaves his son Scott Matusovich and his wife Becca of New Gloucester, ME, two daughters Wendy Matusovich and her husband Sean Heneghan of Melrose, MA and Holly Matusovich and her husband Ed Colvin of Newport, VA, two brothers, Gerald and William Matusovich, both of Oxford, three sisters, Marilyn Hornak and Gayle and Carol Breen all of Ansonia and several nieces and nephews. He also leaves his six grandchildren, Emma, Abby, Caroline and Charlotte Matusovich and Rowan and Shailagh Heneghan. He was preceded in death by his grandson Stephen Charles Matusovich. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Friday, October 21 followed by a burial in Pine Grove Cemetery in Ansonia. Memorial donations may be made to The Southbury Land Trust, P.O. Box 600, Southbury, CT 06488 or to the Hospital of Saint Raphael, 1450 Chapel Street, New Haven, CT 06511 (please specify VERDI 4 WEST)
