Sean Connolly, commissioner of the State of Connecticut Department of Veterans Affairs, is responsible for overseeing the Veterans’ Home in Rocky Hill, Conn., and other services for 270,000 veterans residing in the state.
Commissioner Connolly will talk about the Connecticut Wartime Service Ribbon and will pin this award on DMA members who are qualified recipients. He also will touch on the Department of Veterans Affairs and its mission to serve those who have served their country.
A lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve, Commissioner Connolly is a decorated veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He served on active duty for seven years. He also is a lawyer, and prior to being named commissioner in 2015, he was the global ethics and compliance officer for Pratt & Whitney Aircraft.
Commissioner Connolly is the recipient of the Bronze Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Iraqi Campaign Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. He received his undergraduate degree from Bryant University and his Juris Doctor from Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law.
He and his wife live in Hebron, Conn., and have two boys and a rescue puppy.
Of local interest, the first home for veterans in the United States was established in Darien following the Civil War by Benjamin Fitch, a wealthy Connecticut businessman. Other states adopted this policy, which evolved into a national network of homes and was the forerunner of today’s Department of Veterans Affairs.
Darien also is home to Connecticut’s first cemetery for veterans, located in a section of Spring Grove Cemetery on Heckler Avenue across from the Darien Library.
Video: https://vimeo.com/217910976
Wednesday, 10:00AM at the Darien Community Association
Here is the link to the Channel 79 video: Channel 79 2017 DMA Service Awards.