OLD LYME—Robert A. Whitcomb, 92 of Old Lyme passed away peacefully with his beloved wife and daughters by his side on Monday, October 14, 2024. He was born August 22, 1932 in New London, Connecticut …
They married in 1967 and moved to Old Lyme where they raised their two loving daughters, Kimberly A. Whitcomb of Old Saybrook, CT and Jean-Marie Harvey (Mickey) of Old Saybrook, CT …
Robert was a faithful member of Christ the King Church in Old Lyme where he served as Eucharistic Minister and other positions as assigned. He was a member of the Mens Club … Robert was a founding member of the Lyme-Old Lyme Lions Club where he was active member until his passing. He gave much of his time to his community …
Robert had many hobbies and was a very talented artist. He spent countless hours taking watercolor classes at the Lyme Old Lyme Senior Center …
Robert is survived by his loving wife Patricia of 57 years, his two daughters Kimberly and Jean-Marie, son in-law Michael (Mickey) Harvey and, his pride and joy, grandchildren Lydia Harvey of Altona, NY and Spencer Harvey of Old Saybrook, CT …
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at Christ the King Church, 1 McCurdy Road in Old Lyme, CT on Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 12:00pm. The rendering of Military Honors will immediately follow the Mass on the grounds of the church. A reception will follow in Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish Center …
The title of this “View” is an allusion to The United States Order of Presidential Succession, which defines the sequence in which the vice president of the United States and other officers of the federal government would assume the powers and duties of the U.S. Presidency.
That defined Order of Succession is that the Office of the President will pass to the vice president for the remainder of the term upon the elected president’s incapacity, death, resignation, or removal from office. If the vice president is unable to serve, the Speaker of the House will act as President.
Note that the sources that define the presidential order of succession are the Constitution of the United States and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947.
A vice president has ascended to the Office of the President due to death or resignation nine times in the history of the United States. (see Appendix at foot of article.)
Accordingly, I consider the candidacy of JD Vance in this essay; and try to determine exactly how JD Vance, a politician who’s a little more than two years into his first elected office, become the GOP’s nominee for vice president? Is he qualified for the top job?
It is a possibility that must be considered. Donald Trump would be the oldest person ever sworn in as President; and concerns about his physical, emotional, and cognitive health have increased.
I will present my thoughts in his own words, citing direct quotes.
Once again, although Trump told CBS News in August that he would “very gladly” release his medical information, he has yet to comply and continues to withhold any real details about his health. He did say he had just had a medical exam and received a “perfect score,” and two cognitive tests, which he said he “aced.” “I got everything right,” Trump said. “And one of the doctors said, ‘I’ve never seen that before, where you get everything right.’” Wow!
If you read my last two “Views,” — “Why I Vote,” which were serialized in LymeLine, you know why I cannot, in good conscience, support the candidacy of Donald Trump—a convicted felon—who promises an administration of retribution, revenge, and retaliation against his opponents and perceived “enemies;” which now include Google, who he claims has been “illegally showing only ‘bad’ stories about him and only ‘good’ ones about Kamala Harris.”
Incredibly, Trump has demanded, via posts on social media, a televised military tribunal for Liz Cheney, and the jailing of top elected officials, including President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
I reviewed Trump’s rally speeches, the Hitleresque themes of several of his rallies, his hatred for immigrants, creepy obsession with crowd size; and his nearly constant use of ridiculous insults and threatening rhetoric and statements; all of which became worse and more unhinged when he reverted to his old favorites, racism and misogyny as the Harris campaign progressed.
Note that the observations and opinions presented in this, and all my “Views,” are my own.
I assessed several political and legal events in Trump’s life that illustrate his moral and ethical principles; and found a man of highly compromised character. I detailed the repeated insults he has aimed at our veterans and military heroes; and the praise he has directed at our enemies like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un; and concluded that he is remarkably ill-suited for the role of Commander in Chief of America’s Armed Forces. Trump has also said that he wants military leadership that mimics the Nazi high command.
I showed that Trump and his allies regularly attack the mainstream media, often singling out The Washington Post, the NY Times, and CNN as “fake news” and “the enemy of the people.”
Crowd Size:
Trump tried to elevate himself to the level of World War II British prime minister, Winston Churchill when he addressed an Indiana, PA rally on Sept. 23. Although Trump did acknowledge Churchill as a “great speaker,” he proposed that he himself should be included in that category and complained, “I get much bigger crowds than him, “but nobody ever says I’m a great speaker.”
About a week earlier, he had also declared that he attracted bigger crowds than Elvis Presley, saying, “I’m the greatest of all time, maybe greater even than Elvis.”
The Nominee:
James David (JD) Vance is a man of flexible values; who has evolved into Trump’s “attack dog.”
Vance was once a fervent critic of Donald Trump and had been a key voice in the “Never Trump” movement during the 2016 election. “I’m a Never Trump guy,” Vance said in an interview with Charlie Rose.
In February 2016, Vance posited that Trump was “cultural heroin; and a few months later wrote in The Atlantic that, “During this election season, it appears that many Americans have reached for a new pain reliever. It too, promises a quick escape from life’s cares, an easy solution to the mounting social problems of U.S. communities and culture. It demands nothing and requires little more than a modest presence and maybe a few enablers. It enters minds, not through lungs or veins, but through eyes and ears, and its name is Donald Trump.”
Vance sent an e-mail to his former law school roommate, Josh McLaurin, who is now a Democratic state senator in Georgia (McLaurin has publicly shared the message.) Vance wrote “I go back and forth between thinking Trump is a cynical A-hole like Nixon, who wouldn’t be that bad (and might even prove useful) or that he’s America’s Hitler.” How’s that for discouraging?
McLaurin said, “I never could have dreamed during those exchanges in 2016 that he would end up being one of the principal reinforcers of Trumpism only a few years later.”
In an interview with NPR in August, 2016, Vance said, “If I feel like Trump has a really good chance of winning, I might have to hold my nose and vote for Hillary Clinton,”
Speaking with CNN in October 2016, Vance criticized Trump for “actively antagonizing” Black voters, claiming this tactic was a long-standing Republican strategy.
“It’s not just that Donald Trump doesn’t speak to issues of special concern of minority voters or Black voters, it’s that he seems to like actively antagonizing a lot of the Black voters.”
“I think that Trump will probably lose,” he wrote in June 2020, a few months before ballots were cast in an election that Vance would later claim, falsely and repeatedly, was stolen by the Democrats.
The Transformation:
I cannot speculate on what occurred to Vance as he contemplated a bid for the Ohio Senate seat, but he became a “new believer” and launched an intense yearlong effort to fabricate a new image as a leading MAGA proponent with appearances on Fox News and meetings at Mar-a-Lago.
He earned Trump’s endorsement in the Ohio Republican Senate primary and was elected to the Senate in 2022; he was also funded heavily by pro-Trump tech mogul Peter Thiel. Note that he had apologized well ahead of his Senate campaign for calling Trump “reprehensible” over his anti-immigrant rhetoric.
During his Senate campaign, Vance denounced what he described as a “cabal” of public health experts led by White House adviser Anthony S. Fauci, that he said was seeking to suppress American liberties with unreasonable pandemic restrictions.
Cat Ladies:
In a 2021 interview with Fox News host Tucker Carlson, Senate-candidate Vance complained that the U.S. was being run by Democrats, corporate oligarchs and “a bunch of childless cat ladies, who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made, and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”
The VP Debate:
Vance is a master of mis-direction, thus failing to answer direct questions
Vance claimed that Trump “peacefully gave over power on January 20th and said, “I believe we do have a threat to democracy in this country, but it’s not the threat that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz want to talk about. It’s the threat of censorship.”
Vance lied about the state bill Walz signed to guarantee abortion rights, casting it as enabling infanticide, even as he falsified his own advocacy for a national abortion ban.
Astonishingly, he claimed that Trump “saved” the Affordable Care Act. “He worked in a bipartisan way to ensure that Americans had access to affordable care.” Another attempt by Vance and Trump to rewrite the record …
The Jan. 6 attack, and Trump’s false claims of a stolen election that inspired it represented the final question from the moderators and Vance muffed it; and so Walz then re-asked it as a direct question to Vance, “Well, did he lose the 2020 election?”
“Tim, I’m focused on the future,” Vance replied; to which Walz responded, “That is a damning non-answer.”
The Trump / Vance Campaign:
After his confirmation as VP nominee, Vance attacked President Biden and claimed on Fox News that Americans elected an “empty vessel” in 2020 who is now “an incapacitated president.” He claimed Democrats had lied about Biden’s health.
Cats and Dogs:
Both Trump and Vance have repeatedly, and falsely, asserted that a community of Haitians living in Springfield, Ohio, have been kidnapping pet cats and dogs and eating them.
Here’s the Trump quote from the presidential debate: “In Springfield (Ohio), they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating, they’re eating the pets of the people that live there.” As a result of that statement, hospitals, elementary and middle schools, and universities in the area have experienced threats of violence, forcing closures and evacuations.
Worse yet, Vance insists that he will keep calling the Haitian immigrants living in his state “illegal aliens,” saying that he does not consider immigrants who legally settled in the United States under programs managed by the Biden Administration and Vice President Kamala Harris to be lawful residents.” Vance states, “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do.” Note: My assumption is assume that “to create stories” means to lie.
Vance has downplayed the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, stating that he “doubted” former Vice President Mike Pence’s life was in danger, despite the violent circumstances of that day. “Hang Mike Pence!”
He has echoed Trump’s criticisms of how the Justice Department prosecuted the Capitol attack rioters, alleging that the department disregarded due process protections.
Vance told ABC “This Week” that he “would not have certified the 2020 election results until states submitted pro-Trump electors.”
Hurricane Helene Misinformation:
On arrival in Valdosta, Ga. to view Hurricane Helene’s devastation, Trump claimed that President Biden was “sleeping” and not responding to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who he said was “calling the president and hasn’t been able to get him.”
Kemp had said earlier in the day that he had spoken to the president, who offered any help the state needed and said to call him directly. Trump repeated his false claims at an event with reporters, even after being informed that Gov. Kemp had said that he had already spoken to Biden.
Trump, also claimed without evidence that the federal government and North Carolina’s Democratic governor were “going out of their way to not help people in Republican areas.” Asheville, which was devastated by the storm, is solidly Democratic, as is much of Buncombe County, which surrounds it.
North Carolina Governor Cooper called out Trump’s latest lies that he, “along with “Democrats in Washington,” were blocking aid from coming into the state to help people in need, including President Biden and Kamala Harris, saying, “It’s all over the place—A HORRIBLE SITUATION.”
Cooper said it was “This is a flat-out lie. “We’re working with all partners around the clock to get help to people. Trump’s lies and conspiracy theories have hurt the morale of first responders and people who lost everything, helped scam artists and put government and rescue workers in danger.”
Earlier, Trump boasted that he’d gotten his “buddy” Elon Musk to send Starlink satellites into North Carolina.”
FEMA had already sent 40 Starlinks to the state to restore communications.
All this from the man who, as president, withheld money from hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico for years and on a belated visit tossed paper towels at needy residents. On other occasions, he repeatedly threatened to block money from blue-state governors, notably California’s Gavin Newsom during the 2018 wildfires, while promising “A-plus” treatment for states whose governors supported him.
Notably, President Biden criticized Vance as “a clone of Trump on the issues,” noting, that Vance will do what Mike Pence would not, that is, “Bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people.”
I will expand a little on those comments with an anecdote from the cinema: Mini-Me was a character from the Austin Powers trilogy of satirical spy movies. Before Dr. Evil was sent back in time to 1969, his followers made him a clone. The clone was similar in every manner although he was one-eighth his size (although Mini-Me is approximately one-third Dr. Evil’s size). Upon being introduced to his clone, Dr. Evil immediately declared, “I shall call him ‘Mini-Me.’”
Appendix: “The Nine“
John Tyler succeeded William Henry Harrison on his death in April, 1841. Harrison had only served from March 4 to April 4, 1841, the shortest presidency in U.S. history. Note that he was the oldest president-elect to take office until Ronald Reagan in 1981. Harrison’s Inaugural Adress was one hour and 45 minutes long, and was delivered in shirtsleeves in cold, windy weather. He died of pneumonia on April 4, 1841.
Millard Fillmore succeeded Zachary Taylor when Taylor died in July, 1850.
Andrew Johnson succeeded Abraham Lincoln upon Lincoln’s assassination on April 15, 1865.
Chester A. Arthur succeeded James Garfield on September 19, 1881, upon Garfield’s assassination; after only 199 days as vice president.
Theodore Roosevelt succeeded William McKinley as president on September 14, 1901, upon McKinley’s assassination; after 194 days as vice president.
Calvin Coolidge succeeded Warren G. Harding as the 30th POTUS on August 2, 1923, upon Harding’s sudden death. Coolidge had been vice president for 2 years, 151 days.
Harry Truman succeeded Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the 33rd POTUS on April 12, 1945 after FDR’s death. Truman was a United States senator from Missouri from 1935 to 1945; and served, briefly, as vice president in 1945.
Lyndon Baines Johnson succeeded John F. Kennedy as the 36th POTUS on Nov 22, 1963, upon JFK’s assassination. LBJ had an extensive career in elected office.
Gerald R. Ford succeeded Richard M. Nixon when Nixon resigned on August 8, 1974. Ford had an extensive career in elected office.
Editor’s Note:This is the opinion of Thomas D. Gotowka.
About the Author: Tom Gotowka is a resident of Old Lyme, whose entire adult career has been in healthcare. He will sit on the Navy side at the Army/Navy football game. He always sit on the crimson side at any Harvard/Yale contest. He enjoys reading historic speeches and considers himself a scholar of the period from FDR through JFK. A child of AM Radio, he probably knows the lyrics of every rock and roll or folk song published since 1960. He hopes these experiences give readers a sense of what he believes “qualify” him to write this column.
Author’s Comments: What has happened to the Republican party? These are two labile, volatile men, and they are absolutely out of control and creating havoc. This has become a campaign of lies. There is not even a hint of policy or platform in his “presentations.”
Trump, and now Vance, continue the false claims of election fraud to this day; and so, I am concerned that he will not respect the results of the election when he loses again
The Atlantic has endorsed Kamala Harris for president; only the fifth time since its founding in 1857 that it has endorsed a presidential candidate. This is the third time it has endorsed Trump’s opponent. (The Atlantic endorsed Abraham Lincoln in 1860.)
The endorsement of Harris reflects its thorough dislike of Trump as “one of the most personally malignant and politically dangerous candidates in American history” and echoes its 1860 warning that this election “is a turning-point in our history.”God save the United States of America.
Sources: A Heartbeat Away: Alexander, R. et al. “Is JD Vance ready to govern on Day One?” Ohio Capital Journal. 08/09/2024 Allison, N. “‘My god what an idiot’: J.D. Vance gets whacked for past Trump comments.” Politico. 10/23/2021. Becket, S. et al. “2020 election “most secure in history,” security officials say.” CBS News. 11/13/2020 Bemiller, H. “JD Vance has been a U.S. senator for 20 months. Is he ready to be vice president?”USA Today. 09/30/2024. Cillizza, C. “The amazing – but true! – reason J.D. Vance is now favored to become a US senator.” CNN.05/04/2022 Cortellessa, E. “The Reinvention of J.D. Vance.” Time. 09/26/2024. Cox- Richardson, H. “The Atlantic endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.” Letters from an American.10/10/2024. DeWitt, D. “JD Vance a shameless apologist for insurrection in America and war crime assaults on democracy abroad.” Ohio Capital Journal. 02/23/2023. Douthat, R. “Opinion: What J.D. Vance Believes.” NYTimes. 06/13/2024. Dickinson, T. “In Debate Spotlight, Vance Proved He Can Lie Just Like Trump.” Rolling Stone. 10/02/2024 Evans, N. “Vance wondered whether Trump was ‘America’s Hitler,’ says former roommate sharing screenshot.” Ohio Capital Journal. 04/19/2022 FEMA. (09/30/2024.) “FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell is On the Ground in North Carolina, Biden-Harris Administration Actively Responding and Providing Life-Saving Support.” [Press Release] Fortinsky, S. Haberman: Trump campaign ‘perfectly happy’ with Vance in ‘attack dog’ role’.” The Hill. 09/18/2024. Graeme, B. JD Vance named as Trump’s running mate.” BBC. 07/15/2024. Graham, D. “J. D. Vance Tries to Rewrite History.” The Atlantic. 10/02/2024. Gomez-Licon, A. et al. “Trump makes false claims about federal response as he campaigns in area ravaged by Hurricane Helene.” Associated Press. 09/30/2024. Jamison, P. “JD Vance, in 2020 messages, said Trump ‘thoroughly failed to deliver’.” The Washington Post. 09/27/2024. Kaczynski, A. & Steck,E. “JD Vance, Trump’s VP pick, once called him a ‘moral disaster,’ and possibly ‘America’s Hitler’.” CNN. 07/16/2024 Leingang, R. “Hurricane Helene conspiracy theories collide with election misinformation.” The Guardian. 10/04/2024. Lerner, K. “New Trump January 6 court filing highlights perils of possible JD Vance vice-presidency.” The Guardian. 10/09/2024 Main, A. & Bradford, E. “Trump selected Ohio Sen. JD Vance, a critic turned ally, as running mate after last-minute push from son.” CNN. 07/15/2024 McFall, M. “JD Vance Warning Issued by Mary Trump: ‘Abnormal and Dangerous’.” Newsweek.10/03/2024 Moran, L. George Conway Sums Up A Donald Trump Tactic With 2 Words From Adolf Hitler. Huffington Post. 10/07/2024. Nicholls, F. “Trump Warns Hostile Migrants Have Machine Guns Beyond ‘Military Scope’.” Newsweek. 10/02/2024. Roush, T. “JD Vance Said ‘Emperor’ Trump ‘Thoroughly Failed’ In 2020, Report Says.”Forbes. 09/27/2024. Shoemaker, A. “ ‘She can go to hell’: JD Vance attacks VP Kamala Harris over withdrawal from Afghanistan.” The Cincinnati Enquirer. 08/28/2024. Vance, JD. “Opioid of the Masses.” The Atlantic. 07/04/2016. Wang, A. &Kornfield, M. “The not-so-kind things J.D. Vance said about Trump before he was VP pick.” The Washington Post. 07/15/2024. Warren, M. et al. “Senate hopeful J.D. Vance apologizes for criticizing Trump as ‘reprehensible’ in deleted tweets.” CNN. 07/16/2021. Watson, K. “Trump defends personal attacks on Harris, discusses election outcome, release of medical records.” CBS News. 08/20/2024.
LYME, CT—Designer Peter F. Carlson, age 70, died unexpectedly at his home in Old Lyme, Aug. 14, 2024. Originally hailing from Boston, Mass., Peter resided in various locations before establishing himself in a drafty but charming barn he imported from New Hampshire and transformed into a remarkable home. While it may lack a sunroom – a feature he often wished he could add – Peter took the absence in stride, always making light of it as he dreamed up plans for a future renovation.
Peter was a paradox. Generally warm and affable, he could occasionally display a short temper and cantankerous disposition. His partner Larry would sometimes refer to him as “Ebenezer,” while close friends and helpers playfully called him “My Liege,” both nicknames affectionately acknowledging his more challenging traits. Comparisons were drawn on more than one occasion between Peter and Hugh Laurie’s titular character on “House, M.D.,” as they both shared a sharp intellect and a flair for unconventional problem-solving.
Despite this, Peter often took more quickly to humor than he did to anger. Few topics were considered off-limits, and he navigated life’s ups and downs with kindness, self-assurance, and an irreverent wit. He found joy in life’s simple pleasures – his beloved dog Jack, his garden, Fortuny fabric, and an eclectic collection of small obelisks. He loved simple things from childhood like Lipton Noodle Soup packets and that ghastly New England brown bread sold in a can.
Peter’s house was never quiet. He enjoyed the music of Al Green and Aretha Franklin, the thoughtful discourse of NPR and lately, streaming CNN all day long to keep up with the latest political rancor. He loved documentaries about fashion and the luxury homes of Babe Paley, Patti Astor and Elsa Schiaparelli. In stark contrast to this, he also inexplicably enjoyed the TV series “Snapped.” He felt kinship with the maximalist designer Tony Duquette and often signed off his elaborate emails, “With love, TONY D.” Peter also loved reading obituaries and sharing them in emails to neighbors and colleagues, even going so far as to print and file the ones he thought were particularly good in a dedicated obituaries folder.
However, more than any of these things, he deeply loved his family and his friends. He was especially proud of his partner Larry, who was an esteemed middle school teacher at Friends Seminary in New York for 45 years.
Peter was born in Boston in 1954, but his family eventually settled in Barrington, R.I., where he spent many of his formative years. A life-long music lover, he traveled to Austria as a young member of the Barrington Boys’ Choir. He later studied English and the Arts at Connecticut College in New London, from 1972 to 1976, where he participated in the American Dance Festival. In 1974, he also attended the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center.
After graduating, Carlson moved to New York, embarking on a professional journey as a struggling young actor, sustaining himself by bartending at the legendary Studio 54 and working as a part-time driver. One unforgettable client was Edie Beale, the iconic performer from Grey Gardens fame, whom he chauffeured to and from Newark during her engagement at Reno Sweeney, a celebrated Greenwich Village cabaret. A transformative moment in Peter’s career occurred when he drove a decorator’s black Rolls Royce, adorned with custom needlepoint upholstery, leading him to conclude, “This is the way to live.” With no formal training and no clientele, he established his first interior design firm, where he ultimately achieved enduring success.
In addition to offices in New York, Carlson maintained close ties to New England and had an interior design office in Stonington in 1978, where he focused on the restoration and decoration of historic properties such as the Deshon-Allyn House at the Lyman Allyn Museum, Lyme Academy of Fine Arts and the Stonington Historical Society, restoring several 18th century and Greek revival houses owned by the society. Peter often lectured on various aspects of design for art associations, museums and libraries in the area.
In the early ’80s, Peter was a rising design star in the New York metropolitan area and was a featured designer at several Kips Bay Boys Club Decorator Show houses. Artfully mixing the old and the new, Peter’s style was described by Connoisseur magazine in May 1988 as, “neoclassicism strained through surrealism.” After founding his firm in New York, Peter married fellow designer Linda Chase in 1992. The couple relocated to Los Angeles, merging their businesses and collaborating on numerous commercial projects, including the offices of Sony, Time Warner, and Disney, as well as residential designs for prominent clients such as Kevin Costner and Jerome Moss. Peter and Linda welcomed a son, Alex, before moving to Connecticut, and subsequently divorcing in 1996.
Throughout his career, Peter remained deeply engaged in the design industry. Frustrated by a dearth of suitable lighting options for his clients, he founded a decorative lighting company in 2001 named CL Sterling and Son. Partnering with a close friend and former client, CL Sterling expanded from its Niantic headquarters to include showrooms in New York, Los Angeles, Japan and Australia. Peter’s work garnered recognition in a multitude of esteemed publications, including The New York Times, NY Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Architectural Digest, Connoisseur, Dwell, House Beautiful, Vogue and Interior Design Magazine. His designs can be found today in residential and commercial spaces worldwide.
During his nearly three decades in Lyme, Peter cultivated friendships throughout the community and was renowned for his ability to engage in conversation with nearly anyone. The longevity of his relationships with employees and friends is most easily measured in decades, with many having visited his barn for drinks, dinner, or, on one particularly memorable occasion following a trip to Southeast Asia, a sarong party. His home showcased an impressive collection of works by local artists, and he was finally able to dust off his college-era SAG-AFTRA membership for a minor role he was particularly suited for as an art collector in a film directed by a friend. The film reportedly achieved critical acclaim in Eastern Europe, a fact Peter shared frequently with pride and a wry smile.
Peter was, above all, a steadfast friend to those in need, on more than one occasion giving away the shirt or jacket off his back to someone who needed it more. His kindness, humor, and quick wit will be profoundly missed. He is survived by his son Alex Carlson; his partner Larry Carter; his father’s wife Carol Carlson; and many close friends. He is preceded in death by his mother, Martha (Weir); his father, Paul Carlson; and Alex’s mother, Linda Chase.
A service will be held at1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19, at the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme. All are welcome. Peter was a passionate supporter of numerous charitable causes, including support for Ukraine, the Crosby Fund for Haitian Education, and the ASPCA. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, you consider making a donation to your preferred charity.
OLD LYME—John Allan Bysko, 78, passed away unexpectedly on October 3, 2024 while at work.
He was born July 1, 1946 in a displaced persons camp in Hamburg, Germany. His parents and sister fled from their home in Ukraine during World War II. They came to the United States via Ellis Island when he was 5 years old. He grew up in West Hartford attending Hall High, excelling as a track star as well as in academics. He graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Business Administration with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. He became a Certified Financial Planner in 1987 and a Certified Public Accountant in 1988. Prior to going into private practice, he was a Vice President and Head of Trust and Private Banking for Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, which at the time was the largest commercial bank in Connecticut. For a short time he worked out of his family home but quickly he needed a bigger space and 100 Halls Road became his second home. He was dedicated to his clients, many relationships spanning decades. He truly cared for them and many became dear friends. He quietly cared for many.
A friend introduced him to Jane Barry in February 1969. They were engaged in July and married in December. John leaves to mourn Jane and their 3 children, Jennifer Bysko, John Bysko Jr and Jillian (Glen) Bobowicz as well as his 5 grandchildren, Brody, Ella, Noah, Elias and Owen. He was predeceased by his parents, Motria and Wasyl Byczko as well as his sister Lucy Leavenworth who passed away just seven days prior. He also leaves behind his niece Jolene Crane and nephew James Leavenworth.
He lived in Old Lyme for the past 48 years and was passionate about the community and local politics. He proudly served as Town Treasurer, on the Board of Assessment Appeals, the committee for the renovation of the Town Hall, on the RTC for 20 years and as Treasurer for several local political campaigns.
John joined New London Rotary in 1987 and remained an active member until the day he passed away, after Rotary on a Thursday. John served on the Board of Directors for both the New London Rotary Club and Foundation. As the longtime Sergeant-at-Arms, John was one of the first people to warmly greet members and guests before each weekly meeting. John has been recognized by the club with a Distinguished Service/Paul Harris Fellow Award three times, acknowledging the important service he provided to the club and community of New London. His service to New London also included serving on the New London Symphony Board and the steering committee to form what is now the Community Foundation of Southeastern Connecticut.
The Rotary motto of “Service Above Self” was an apt saying for a man who sought to make the community and the world a better place. John confided to a member after one meeting that Rotary fulfilled his view of what is best in the world; people of all faiths and philosophies coming together through Rotary to become friends while working for the common good.
He liked to collect stamps, always searching for a hidden gem. He was an avid fan of the UConn women’s basketball team. He enjoyed attending games at Mohegan Sun and trying his luck on penny slots. He played setback on Wednesdays in Rhode Island. He went to Rotary every Thursday. He enjoyed the warm waters of the Caribbean. He loved his family beyond words, working tirelessly and showing them the true definition of the American dream. He was a first generation American who came from nothing and paved his own way to success.
He would say that “There’s little stuff and there’s big stuff and most of it is little stuff. Worry about the big stuff.” We will do our best Dad.
Calling hours will be held from 3-6pm on Saturday October 19, 2024 at Fulton Theroux Funeral Home, 13 Beckwith Lane in Old Lyme. A gathering in John’s honor will be planned for a later date.
OLD LYME—Patricia “Patti” C. Calkins died Oct. 10, 2024, at home in the embrace of her husband and son … Patricia was born to Thomas J. Collins and Mary A. (Dorsey) Collins Aug. 10, 1948 …
Patti was married to George P. Calkins Aug. 16, 1969, at the St. Johns R. C. Church in Old Saybrook … When her kids were old enough to begin school, she started working for the Lyme/Old Lyme School District from which she retired after 37 years. … She was not an outdoor person and once responded when our family doctor asked what she did for exercise, “I knit and read.” He had no response.
Above all, Patti was a voracious reader. She read constantly until just before her death. She was an avid member of her monthly book club with several of her closest friends from school. She could be found several days a week at the Old Lyme P.G.N. Library where she had once volunteered …
Patti is survived by her husband George; her daughter Sarah R. (Calkins) Jennings; son Adam C. Calkins; and her beloved granddaughter Emily Patricia Jennings and grandson Matthew J. Jennings; Patricia’s sister Mary A. (Collins) Emma, husband Albert Emma, niece Mara Emma and nephew Jason Emma who all reside in Georgia.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 16, in Christ The King R. C. Church, McCurdy Road, Old Lyme … Patti would wish that in lieu of any flowers, a memorial donation to the P.G.N. Library, or to a library of the donor’s choice, be made to remember her “HAPPY PLACE.” …
