By James Lomuscio
Many had long, accomplished lives, either in their homes, careers and/or volunteer activity that greatly gilded Westport’s quality of life.
Others the town lost in 2019 were taken too early, either at the starting gate of adulthood or barely at midlife. Yet all still made their mark on the town though taken too soon.
The following is a look at just some of those who died in 2019, leaving their own, distinctive legacies making the town a better place:
Arts Patron Mimi Levitt, 97
Philanthropist Annemarie “Mimi” Gratzinger Levitt, patron of the arts and historic preservation, died Jan. 6 at her home in New York. She was 97.
Mimi Levitt: at Levitt Pavilion in 2015. WestportNow.com photo
In Westport, she and her late husband Mortimer Levitt, clothier and founder The Custom Shop, are best known for the summer music venue whose generosity launched the Levitt Pavilion.
She and her husband, often sporting a straw hat, remained a perennial, summer presence at the outdoor theater, and Mimi upheld that bargain long after Mortimer died in 2005.
The pavilion opened in 1974 with financial support from the Levitts following a community-driven effort to create a community gathering spot for music.
The Levitts were the campaign’s largest private contributors, which prompted the town to name the pavilion after them.
Born in Vienna, Austria, Mimi’s childhood was filled with opera and other musical experiences. She emigrated to the United States with her mother at the outbreak of World War II, and soon after attended Pomona College in California, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in French Literature.
According to her obituary, she was fluent in five languages and one of the translators at the Nuremberg trials in the late 1940s. In 1947, she accepted a position as senior assistant to Alfred Barr, Jr., the first director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Following her husband’s death in 2005, she became president of the Levitt Foundation and supported a Levitt program nationwide. In 2011, she was honored at the Westport Arts Awards as a “Champion of the Arts.”
Thomas G. Ghianuly, 83
Tommy Ghianuly: loved the barber shop. Helen Klisser During for WestportNow.com
Beloved barber Thomas G. Ghianuly, owner of Compo Center Barber Shop, keeping untold thousands of Westporters well-groomed for more than 50 years, died Jan. 7 at 83.
A native of Bridgeport, he was nonetheless the quintessential Westport shopkeeper, keeping generations not only well coifed, but up to date on gossip more in keeping with Mayberry and bustling Post Road East.
Former First Selectman Gordon Joseloff, who had honored him with a proclamation at his business’ 50th anniversary, called Tommy, as he was affectionately known throughout town, “a humble, selfless person who put others before himself.”
Andrew Padula, 100
Maybe it was the tea leaves or, perhaps, just good genes, but lifelong Westporter Andrew Padula saw a century pass in town when he died at 100 on Jan. 9. He also celebrated 73 years with his wife Sue Padula who predeceased him.
Padula served as vice president of production at the Bigelow Tea Company for many years, traveling to Japan, Germany, Italy, as well as nationwide for the Fairfield-based tea importer. One of his favorite hobbies was building birdhouses.
John Nowinski, 37
Well known in the animal rescue community, Jonathan “Jon” J. Nowinski, operations director of the Westport-based Emergency Animal Response Service (EARS), died Jan. 23 at Yale-New Haven Hospital from complications of a longtime battle with health issues. He was 37.
Jon Nowinski: friend of animals. Contributed photo
A native of Greenwich, he lived in Westport since 1986. According to his obituary, He worked in many fields of research and study. Earliest was his passion and creation of SGRA (Smoking Gun Research Agency) which he developed to bring education and attention to the paranormal as well as conspiracy theories.
In his early 20s, he created Vote for Freedom, which he used to bring young people and politicians together and educate them on why the right to vote is so important. His 30s were spent devoting his life and passion to animals and animal care.
Estelle Thompson Margolis, 92
Antiwar, civil rights and gun control activist Estelle Thompson Margolis, often seen brandishing a peace vigil placard on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge, died March 1 on what would have been her 60th wedding anniversary. She was 92.
Estelle Margolis: longtime Westporter. Contributed photo
“She lived her 92 years on her own terms, and she spread love, warmth, creativity and her distinct set of passionately-held beliefs to everyone in her life,” her obituary read.
In addition to being an activist, she was an accomplished architect and artist, who had lived in town since 1965.
She was predeceased in 2011 by her husband Emanuel (Manny) Margolis, a renowned civil libertarian and former chairman of the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union. He was 85.
Michael P. Koskoff, 77
Michael P. Koskoff: top lawyer. Contributed photo
Prominent civil attorney and senior partner of Bridgeport-based Koskoff, Koskoff and Bieder law firm, Westporter Michael P. Koskoff died April 24 from complications of pancreatic cancer. He was 77.
His work ranged from civil rights cases to medical malpractice. According to his obituary, he was also a theatrical buff, writing with son Jacob a film about Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
Anne Cole Beers, 94
Always sporting a huge smile and her Navy uniform at Veterans Navy and Memorial Day celebrations, Westporter Anne Cole Beers died April 20 at home. She was 94.
Anne Beers: World War II vet. Contributed photo
Beers joined the Navy in 1944, serving in the naval hospital at Norfolk, Virginia, during World War II and attaining the rank of pharmacist mate.
After the war, she attended Tufts University on the G.I. Bill and graduated magna cum laude with a degree in psychology. There she met Rowland Austin “Junie” Beers, whom she married in 1947.
In town, Beers had a long and successful career in real estate, retiring from William Raveis Realtors at 89 years old.
She was a member of the Chi Omega sorority, the American Association of University Women, the Westport Woman’s Club, the Sunrise Rotary, the Y’s Women, the Greens Farms Association, and the League of Women Voters.
Carole Barbara Donenfeld, 85
Carole Barbara Donenfeld, a former Westport resident and member of the Westport Representative Town Meeting (RTM), died May 1 after a lengthy illness. She was 85.
Carole Donenfeld: former RTM member. Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com
She served on the RTM from 1987 to 1993, overlapping with her late husband, Irwin, who served on the RTM from 1981 to 2003. He died in 2004.
Carole was a strong supporter of the League of Women Voters of Westport, participating in many of its get-out-the-vote efforts and fundraising activities over the years.
She was outspoken on many Westport issues and was a frequent commenter on WestportNow.
She was predeceased by husband Irwin and daughter Lynn Gross. Survivors include children Luke (Cindy), Amy (Thomas), Ben, Mimi Foss (Peter), and Harry, grandchildren Ian, Isabella, Andrea, Tina, Parker and two great-grandchildren.
Phyllis Groner, 90
Phyllis Groner, a WestportNow contributing photographer for more than 12 years, died Aug. 29. She was 90.
Phyllis Groner: photographer, artist. Contributed photo
Groner had been living in Meadow Ridge, Redding since suffering injuries in a 2017 car crash in Westport.
An avid amateur photographer, she began contributing photos to WestportNow in 2005. She quickly won fans for her variety of subjects ranging from nature scenes and sunsets to various hard news assignments.
Groner was beloved by her colleagues, who saw her as indefatigable despite her age.
“Phyllis brought a contagion of joy to every assignment I worked with her,” said James Lomuscio, WestportNow associate editor. “She truly enjoyed being there, be it a planned event or a breaking story.
“She loved her craft, and her affable smile set so many subjects at ease,” he added. “She also ran rings around a much younger generation of shutterbugs. All of us at WestportNow miss her.”
During Groner’s tenure, her works were exhibited in several locations, including the Westport Library and Westport Center for Senior Activities.
She was predeceased by her husband Stanley Groner who died Dec. 6.
Barbara Probst Solomon, 90
Barbara Probst Solomon, a former Westport writer known worldwide for chronicling Spain under Gen. Francisco Franco — and locally for inspiring a film saying F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” was born in Westport — died Sept. 1 at her home in New York City. She was 90.
According to The New York Times, Solomon, whose essays appeared in the same paper, The New Yorker and The New Republic among others, died of renal failure.
It also cited her book “Arriving Where We Started,” Solomon’s 1972 memoir choreographing her role in the anti-Franco resistance.
Locally, she is best known for her 1996 New Yorker piece “Westport Wildlife” that highlighted the town’s riotous past, influencing Westport filmmakers Robert Stevens Williams and Richard “Deej” Webb in 2015 to produce “Boats Against the Current.”
Betty L. Corwin, 98
Betty L. Corwin of Weston, a former Westport resident and pioneering theater archivist in preserving New York off-Broadway and Broadway performances on film and tape, died Sept. 10. She was 98.
Betty Corwin: at the Senior Center in 2011. Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com
For her creation of the Theater on Film and Tape at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, she was recognized with a Special Tony Award in 2001.
After moving to Weston, Corwin maintained close ties to Westport friends and frequented the Westport Country Playhouse.
In 2011, she appeared in a documentary film, “Old Is …” created by the late local artist and author Tracy Sugarman and late film producer Bill Buckley. The film demonstrated that seniors who stay active lead longer, productive lives.
Eric Pleskow, 95
Noted film executive Eric Pleskow, who ran United Artists and co-founded and led Orion Pictures, died Oct. 1 in Westport. He was 95.
Eric Pleskow: led Viennale. File photo
The Austria native also has served as president of the Vienna International Film Festival since 1998. The Viennale announced his death.
Pleskow was involved in the making of Hollywood hits including “Platoon,” ‘‘Rocky” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.”
Born on April 24, 1924, in Vienna, Pleskow and his family fled Europe via France days before the outbreak of World War II, eventually reaching the United States.
Peter H. Greenberg, 25
Peter H. Greenberg: Staples graduate. Contributed photo
The promising life of Peter Henry Greenberg was tragically cut short Oct. 24 when he was struck by a motor vehicle on Bulkley Ave North and North Sasco Commons. He was 25.
A lifelong resident of Westport, he graduated from Staples High School, earned an AA from Landmark College in Putney, Vermont, and a BA from Manhattanville College in Westchester, New York.
He is survived by his parents, Jay and Susan Greenberg, his sister Flora Greenberg, grandmother Edith Rosenbaum, and a large and loving extended family.
Turker Aksoy, 46
Westport Firefighter Turker Aksoy, a 13-year veteran of the department, died of after battling occupational cancer Nov. 22 at Branford Hospice. He was 46.
Turk Aksoy: 13-year veteran Contributed photo
He had been predeceased by his wife Denise in January and left behind two children.
Prior to coming to Westport, he worked as a paramedic in Hartford for several years prior to starting as a Westport firefighter.
According to his obituary, Askoy was an avid sailor and outdoorsman. In his off time he enjoyed spending time with his children. You could often find him attending his son’s lacrosse games or watching his daughter in equestrian events.
“Please keep Turk’s children, his family friends and fellow firefighters in your thoughts for strength and healing in this difficult time,” said Nick Marsan, Local 1081 union president.
