John Vinci, ‘Mr. Soccer,’ set for Italian of Year honor Friday

WEST HAVEN, Oct. 6, 2022 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and the West Haven Italian Heritage Committee will honor the city’s “Mr. Soccer” as the “primo italiano” at the 23rd annual Italian Heritage Celebration.

West Haven Youth Soccer League President John Vinci, a proud ambassador of his rich Italian heritage, will receive the Italian American of the Year award at noon Friday at City Hall, 355 Main St.

The award is bestowed annually on an Italian resident or couple who personifies service in the city’s close-knit Italian American community.

Accompanied by Italian music and guided by Rossi, members of the committee and the West Haven Italian American Civic Association will escort Vinci to the steps of City Hall for his special recognition. An Italian-flavored lunch will follow.

“(The Italian American award) is an honor, something I never even thought of,” said Vinci, the grandson of immigrant grandparents from the family’s namesake city of Vinci in the region of Tuscany, Italy. “My grandparents would be proud.”

Vinci, 75, a Westie of nearly 50 years, will pay homage to his Italian lineage with scores of friends and loved ones, along with an array of dignitaries and descendants of folks from the old country clad in red, white and green.

His paternal grandparents left their home in central Italy and came to America for a brighter future, arriving on New York’s Ellis Island in the early 1920s and settling in the upstate New York town of Whitehall, the state’s smallest town, bordering Vermont.

In the intrepid spirit of Italians who charted a course for millions of immigrants who followed their crossing to America, Vinci and his grandparents are a testament to the diversity and promise of the United States.

“I am thrilled to recognize John Vinci as our Italian American of the Year,” Rossi said. “John has been the lifeblood of West Haven Youth Soccer for many years, and his commitment to his athletes and his community is why he is overdue for this recognition.”

Since 1984, Vinci has given back to the community through the game of soccer, serving as a coach, referee and league official.

Above all, he said he enjoyed coaching his son Chris’ teams, joking, “Chris left, and I didn’t.”

After longtime league President Paul Duffy stepped down, Vinci, then the vice president, assumed the presidency in 2001.

Since then, Vinci has grown the soccer league into “the largest youth sports league for boys and girls in Connecticut.”

His support of all things West Haven Youth Soccer, established in 1978, is so revered that the league named the field at Pagels Elementary School in Vinci’s honor.

His dedication to the league is complemented by his service to the community he calls home, a lifework that includes raising awareness and money for the West Haven Breast Cancer Awareness Program.

Each year in recognition of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the league hosts a Columbus Day weekend tournament at The Paul Duffy Soccer Complex next to Bailey Middle School. This year’s tournament, a field of 50 teams from across the state, will kick off Saturday and Sunday.

According to Vinci, players don pink uniforms and use pink balls. The league even paints pink lines on the field instead of the traditional white to increase breast cancer awareness.

Best of all, some of the tournament’s proceeds and raffles, along with a breast cancer ribbon sticker fundraiser, benefit the city’s breast cancer program, with more than $20,000 collected to date, Vinci said.

In observance of Italian American Heritage Month, West Haven recognizes the unique and vibrant culture of Americans of Italian descent and celebrates the story of generations of Italian sons and daughters who came to the U.S. seeking hope and opportunity to reach for the American dream.

At the City Hall ceremony, Rossi will present Vinci, West Haven’s top “paisano” of 2022, with an embroidered “Italian American of the Year” jacket and a mayoral citation for his civic-minded contributions and volunteerism.

He will also receive an Italian flag from Paul M. Frosolone, the president of the Italian American Civic Association, and Roberta Daniels DeFonce, a past president of the association’s Ladies Auxiliary.

The cultural event will include remarks by Rossi and her executive assistant, Louis P. Esposito Jr., the master of ceremonies. It will also include an Italian blessing and the singings of “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the Italian national anthem, “II Canto degli Italiani.”

Vinci was born and raised in Cohoes, New York, a city in the northeast corner of Albany County. He graduated from La Salle Institute, a Catholic college preparatory school in Troy, New York, and the University of Rochester.

Now retired, Vinci was employed as a senior technical director in the information technology department at AT&T. He was also an IT executive at SBC Communications and the Southern New England Telephone Co. All three telecommunications companies formerly operated in New Haven.

Vinci and his wife, Joanne, live on Ocean Avenue near West Shore’s Lake Street Beach.

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West Haven Fire/Police Service, Public Safety & Health Exposition scheduled for Oct. 15 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

WEST HAVEN, Oct. 4, 2022 — West Haven’s three fire departments and the city will salute National Fire Prevention Week with an exposition of all things fire, police, public safety and health.

The second annual West Haven Fire/Police Service, Public Safety & Health Expo is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 15 at Old Grove Park and Palace Street. The rain date is Oct. 16. Free parking is available in the lots off Captain Thomas Boulevard.

See the Flyer.

West Haven’s collective fire services include the independent West Haven Fire Department, which serves the First Fire Taxation, or Center, District, and the independent West Shore Fire Department, which serves the Shore’s 2nd District. It also includes the 3rd District’s formerly independent Allingtown Fire Department, which was taken over by the city in July 2012 and is now known as the City of West Haven Fire Department Allingtown.

Together, the departments have been in operation for 350 years — West Haven since 1888, Allingtown since 1907 and West Shore since 1918.

West Haven Chief James P. O’Brien, West Shore Chief Stephen Scafariello and Allingtown Chief Michael R. Terenzio are organizing the large public exhibition, which will feature fire engine and firetruck displays, including antique fire apparatus, and a fire service exhibit at Old Grove Park and Palace Street.

The expo will include Mack firetruck rides, a hazmat trailer, food trucks, the departments’ rescue boats and fire merchandise vendors, as well as live music by Tre Paul and an appearance by Sparky the Fire Dog, said organizer Beth A. Sabo, the Expo Committee’s chairwoman.

It will also include educational demonstrations on smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, drone technology, home sprinkler systems, first aid, and fire code and investigation.

West Haven firefighters will demonstrate the department’s 35-foot smoke trailer and show children what to do in the event of a fire.

West Haven Professional Firefighters Local 1198 will collect donations for its annual Muscular Dystrophy Association charity event.

Allingtown firefighters will perform a certified inspection or installation of child safety car seats for the public free of charge. They will also show how to ensure that the portable seats have been properly fastened for securing small children.

Fire apparatus dealers and members of the University of New Haven’s Fire Science and EMS/Paramedic clubs will have resource tables with information on products and programs.

Jennifer A. Amendola, the director of West Haven’s 911 Emergency Communications Center, which operates out of police headquarters at 200 Sawmill Road, will educate the public on the structure of the city’s Emergency Reporting System and what the dispatchers do.

Amendola and other ERS dispatchers will demonstrate how to make a “real” phone call to 911 while showing people what the dispatcher on the other end of the call would be doing. For example, dispatchers will show the public the premade, established card sets that consist of a series of questions they must ask when receiving certain types of medical emergencies to give the callers an idea of why the questions need to be asked and why.

Dispatchers will show how to “TEXT 911” if people cannot place a phone call in an emergency. There will also be a display of what the dispatcher workstations look like, along with some of the equipment they use, such as headsets and portables.

“West Haven 911 will be happy to educate the public on any questions they may have about the system, how it works, what to do,” Amendola said. “We want to make sure people know when to call and reassure them that there will always be a voice on the other end to help them.”

ERS dispatchers will also distribute educational materials and pass out goodies to people of all ages to remind them that 911 should be called for any police, fire or medical emergency, Amendola said.

The West Haven Department of Emergency Management will have information on the city’s Community Emergency Response Team, storm preparation, post-storm recovery, and natural and human-made disasters.

Emergency Management Director Joseph Soto said the CERT program, which needs volunteers, educates volunteers on disaster preparedness for hazards that could impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization and disaster medical operations.

Soto will sign up residents for West Haven’s emergency notification system to receive alerts. The Citizen Notification System enables the city to quickly provide residents with critical information in a variety of situations, such as severe weather, unexpected road closures, missing persons, and building or neighborhood evacuations, he said.

The system is operated in partnership with Everbridge Inc. of Burlington, Massachusetts, the world’s leader in incident notification systems.

Once registered in Everbridge’s secure database, the site will send subscribers time-sensitive messages via cell, home or business phones or email or text messages. The notifications are broadcast through the city’s Emergency Operations Center.

Members of the West Haven Health Department will give doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to those 18 and older and have information on the coronavirus, food sanitation and the flu.

Local health care agencies, including Bridges, will present their programs.

The West Haven Police Department will hold a K-9 demonstration and have information on public safety, crime prevention and law enforcement programs.

The call to “save the date” for vendors and fire, police, public safety and health organizations to participate is underway.

“Save the Date”

Saturday, Oct. 15, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Elsie Encarnacion honored as city’s Hispanic of the Year

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 30, 2022 — Elsie Encarnacion, a longtime downtown business owner, received the city’s Hispanic American of the Year award at the fourth annual Hispanic Heritage Celebration on Friday.

Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and the West Haven Hispanic Heritage Committee recognized Encarnacion, whose grandparents hailed from Puerto Rico, during a midday ceremony on the steps of City Hall.

The committee bestows the award annually on a Hispanic resident who epitomizes service in the city’s thriving Hispanic American community.

At the 20-minute event, Encarnacion, a State Farm agent who owns Encarnacion Insurance & Financial Services Inc. at 487A Campbell Ave., honored her Puerto Rican roots with dozens of friends and loved ones.

Along with descendants of folks from Puerto Rico and Latin America, she was also joined by an array of city and business officials, including 5th District Councilwoman Robbin Watt Hamilton, City Clerk Patricia C. Horvath, Republican Registrar of Voters Jo Ann Callegari, Finance Director Scott Jackson and Simon McDonald, the director of membership and marketing for the Milford Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Encarnacion, 50, humbly accepted the Hispanic American of the Year award by thanking the crowd multiple times.

“I want to give thanks to God, and I want to thank the committee,” said Encarnacion, born Elsie Velasquez and raised in Christiansted, the largest town on St. Croix of the Virgin Islands, where she graduated from St. Croix Central High School in 1990.

Encarnacion was accompanied by her husband, Emilio, who sat in the front row with their Chihuahuas, Chilly and Princess, while looking on with pride as his wife was feted. The couple met while pursuing undergraduate degrees at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico and wed in 1996 when they moved to West Haven.

“I appreciate this (award),” said Encarnacion, who earned a master’s degree in business management from Albertus Magnus College. “This only motivates me to do more.”

A Latin-flavored lunch after the event was catered by Jerri’s Luncheonette of West Haven in the First Congregational Church’s Fellowship Hall, at 464 Campbell Ave. opposite City Hall on the Green. Two cakes were provided by Costco of Milford.

In observance of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs through Oct. 15, West Haven recognizes the important legacy of Hispanic Americans and the inspiring contributions they have made to the culture and history of the United States.

Hispanics have had a profound and positive influence on the civic and cultural life of America, enhancing and shaping the national character with centuries-old traditions that reflect the multiethnic and multicultural customs of their community.

Hispanic Heritage Month, which traces its roots to 1968, begins each year on Sept. 15, the anniversary of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico and Chile also celebrate their independence days during that period.

Rossi said Encarnacion personifies the noble qualities of serving her vibrant community and carrying on the proud traditions of Puerto Rico.

Rossi praised the civic-minded Encarnacion, whom she called a woman of faith and service, for her devotion to the city and its robust Hispanic American community.

Encarnacion, a member of Vertical Church, is known for her volunteerism at the Meloy Road church, where she helped deliver meals to needy residents amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Rossi presented her with an embroidered “Hispanic American of the Year” jacket and a Puerto Rican flag.

The mayor then read a citation lauding Encarnacion’s public-spirted good works.

“As a Puerto Rican business owner … and a woman of character, compassion, principle and wisdom, you represent what is best about West Haven,” Rossi said. “You are proof the American dream is alive and well!”

The cultural event also included remarks by Rossi’s executive assistant, Louis P. Esposito Jr., the master of ceremonies.

Before a Spanish prayer by Vertical Church Pastor David Biewald, Ana Garcia sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the Puerto Rican national anthem, “La Borinqueña.”

Encarnacion and her husband live on Sanford Street in Allingtown.

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