Two New Inductees Join SHS Wall Of Honor
- Philip Thibodeau
- Oct 23
- 2 min read
The Southington High School Wall of Honor, which is now in its nineteenth year, saw two new members join its rolls Wednesday night at a ceremony held in the high school auditorium.
The Wall is designed to recognized SHS graduates who have distinguished themselves through humanitarian work, community service, or lifetime achievement. It is also open to high school alumni who enlisted in the armed services before graduating and were killed during war.
This years honorees were Dr. Bill Pesche and Chris Palmieri.
Dr. Pesche is the chief medical officer and senior vice president for the Hospital of Special Care in New Britain, where he specializes in musculoskeletal and spinal issues. Castle Connolly, a medical-services rating firm, has placed him in the top 7% of practicing physicians. He is also an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, and has served the Southington community as a member of the YMCA Board of Directors, as a youth sports safety officer, and as past president of the Southington Blue Knights Gridiron Club.
Palmieri is the principal of DePaolo Middle School and a current member and past chair of the Town Council. A ubiquitous presence at town events, he plays a key role in organizing the Apple Harvest, and is one reason why so many DePaolo students get involved in community service activities, such as volunteering at Bread for Life’s Soup Night. He has been a volunteer for LEAF, Unico, and Southington Community Services, and has served on many town committees, including Economic Development, Open Space, Ordinances, and Sewers.
Bob Brown, retired teacher, current Board of Education member, and the driving force behind the creation of the Wall of Honor, served as master of ceremonies at the induction.
After listing Dr. Pesche’s many accomplishments – and fighting a lighthearted battle with the pronunciation of the word ‘physiatry’, which appears several times in his resume – Brown turned serious and somber. Overcome with emotion, he described how Pesche had offered him advice and consolation during the trying months when his late wife Gloria lay in the hospital.
When it came time for Palmieri to be inducted, Assistant School Superintendent Frank Pepe came to the microphone to provide a personal tribute. He spoke of the fourteen years they spent working together at DePaolo, and recalled one student dance where Pepe watched the clock tick well past the official end time for the event while Palmieri, who was serving as dj, kept playing “just one more song” to keep the party going and extend the kids’ fun.
Awards of recognition signed by state leadership were presented to Pesche and Palmieri by State Representatives Chris Poulos and Gale Mastrofrancesco, as well as State Senator Rob Sampson, who all praised the inductees:
