The North Haven Citizen

Community pays respects to fallen North Haven first responder, 46

Citizen report

Hundreds of mourners attended calling hours for firefighter Matthias Wirtz at North Haven Funeral Home on Monday.

Wirtz, 46, died after fighting a blaze at 27 Quinnipiac Ave. in North Haven on Dec. 26.

The state’s chief medical examiner determined that Wirtz, a 22-year veteran of the North Haven Fire Department, died of heart-related problems.

Among those paying their respects Monday were Gov. Ned Lamont and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.

See Wirtz, A3

Firefighters from around the state paid their respects to fallen North Haven firefighter Matthias Wirtz at the North Haven Funeral Home on Monday.

Nicole Zappone, The Citizen

See coverage of Tuesday’s funeral on Pages A4-A5.

Arrests made in drive-by killing

Citizen report

Two men have been arrested in connection to the murder of 28-year-old Davonte Warren, who was found with a fatal gunshot wound inside a car that crashed in North Haven in the summer of 2021.

North Haven police said 22year-old Amari Salcedo Jr. and 24-year-old Deane Matta Jr., both of New Haven, were arrested Wednesday and charged for their role in Warren's death.

See Killing, A8

Local family opens up Caribbean restaurant

By Nicole Zappone The Citizen

Gillian Webb’s new Washington Avenue restaurant, Island Cho, is named in honor of her late daughter, Amara.

Webb said Island Cho means “island butterfly” and that Amara, who died at just 6 years old, “loved butterflies, and she connects with us through them.”

Webb and her family opened the

doors to Island Cho, a Caribbean restaurant, on July 5. The eatery’s offerings include Jerk Chicken, Jamaican beef patties, Cho salmon, and much more.

Webb runs the restaurant with

her husband, Charlton, and her nephew Omari Wright. Also, sometimes, 4-year-old Adaolisa can be found following her mom around the place.

See Restaurant, A2

• Fully furnished accommodations, if desired.

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• Complimentary cable, wireless, and telephone.

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• All-inclusive rates- care packages available.

• Respite/vacation stays available

Magnificent

Restaurant

From A1

“I have been cooking and catering for a few years,” Webb said. “To open this place, I thought something like this was really needed in the community. I know people – a lot of people – go on vacation, and then they have Caribbean food. They come back and don’t know where to find it. I decided to bring it to them.”

Webb said the food she offers is more Trinidad- and Jamaican-style.

“I grew up with my mom, who cooked every day, and when I got the chance to cook, I never stopped,” she said.

For years, Webb stayed home with Amara, who was stricken with cystic fibrosis.

The girl passed away three years ago.

“Cooking was my way to help out, and I catered on the weekend to make extra money, ” said Webb, who always dreamed of opening her own restaurant.

Island Cho, which occupies a space where a breakfast nook had been, has a fan in First Selectman Michael Freda.

“This new restaurant features a wide variety of new

and unique dining options on their menu,” Freda said. “North Haven residents who have had lunch or dinner there have given Island Cho outstanding reviews. Island Cho also does a fine takeout business.

Island Cho is located at 448 Washington Ave. and is open Monday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to midnight; Thurs day through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.; and Sunday, 2 p.m. to midnight.

nzappone@record-journal.com

A North Haven tradition in family dining, situated right on RTE 5 this 24 hr diner favorite has been delighting its hungry customers for over 30 years... whether it’s breakfast, lunch, dinner, pie a la mode and coffee or just a late night munchie – the long time family run staff at this clean and tidy restaurant is happy to host you with a smile again and again – easily one of CT’s top diners!

Classic diner fare, international dishes & Greek specialties mingle at this family-owned favorite. 257274v2

320 Washington Ave, North Haven, CT 203-239-0663 Open 24/7

Gillian Webb poses with her daughter Adaolisa, husband Charlton, left, and her nephew Omari Wright at Island Cho, a new Caribbean restaurant at 448 Washington Ave

Nicole Zappone, The Citizen

In Brief

Walking program

The Bobcat Stride, a free walking program, is open to people age 50-plus. Walkers meet weekdays from 6 to 9 a.m. at Quinnipiac University’s North Haven campus, 370 Bassett Road. For more information, contact Katie Picard at Katherine.Picard@ qu.edu.

Special meeting

A special meeting of the North Haven Board of Selectmen will be held Thursday, Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m. in the Community Room of the North Haven Memorial Library, 17 Elm St. The meeting will include a public hearing regarding the town's 2022-2027 Affordable Housing Plan referred to the Board of Selectmen by the Affordable Housing Plan Advisory Committee. A copy of the Affordable Housing Plan draft is posted to the municipal website, along with links to participate in the Jan. 26 meeting remotely.

Blood drive

Wirtz

From A1

“After spending time in the holiday with my three kids and my wife, it underscores

how sad this is and how tragic this is,” Tong said. “The family is going to have one empty chair at future holidays. The focus is about what’s important and that families are there for each other.”

The North Haven Sons & Daughters of Italy Lodge 2805 Community Outreach Committee will host a Red Cross Blood Drive Wednesday, Jan. 11, 1 to 6 p.m., at

St. Frances Cabrini Church, 57 Pond Hill Road. For more information, call Denise at 203-710-7397 or email Krau11@comcast.net.

Ski club

The North Haven Ski Club encourages people interested in winter sports (skiing, snowboarding, cross country skiing, tubing, snowshoeing) to join and take advantage of the great discounts offered to members. Contact Annette Murphy at 203927-3071 or dapdmurph@aol.com.

Energy assistance

The Office of Community Services welcomes residents to schedule an appointment to apply for the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program. Call 203-239-2566.

Explorer program

Comprised of high school students age 14 to 18, the North Haven Fire Explorer program provides opportunities to explore a career path in emergency services as a firefighter, EMT or paramedic. For more information, email NOHFDExplorers@ gmail.com or visit northhavenfire.org.

North Haven First Selectman Michael Freda chats with Gov. Ned Lamont outside the North Haven Funeral Home onMonday. Nicole Zappone, The Citizen

Veteran N.H. firefighter laid to rest

By Nicole Zappone The Citizen

Nearly 1,000 firefighters attended funeral services Tuesday morning for North Haven firefighter Matthias Wirtz, a 22-year veteran of the department who died after collapsing at the scene of a two-alarm blaze on Dec. 26.

A funeral service was held for Wirtz, 46, at St. Elizabeth of Trinity Parish at St. Barnabas Church. He was honored with a line-of-duty death funeral protocol.

Firefighters throughout Connecticut, and some as far as Massachusetts, came out and honored the veteran firefighter.

“Our focus today will be on the membership and the family of our fallen brother, firefighter Matthias Wirtz,”

North Haven Fire Chief Paul Januszewski said in a statement. “Today will be about reflecting on the life of firefighter Wirtz and his dedication to the fire department. For all of us, this last week has been challenging, and we’re thankful for all of the support from neighboring fire departments, police departments, and the

North Haven community. Today as a department, we will grieve together, tomorrow, we will start the healing process, and in the future, we’ll be stronger together.”

At the service, there were readings from Christopher Springer and Sandy

(Cocco) Weber. Eulogies were read by Juergen Weber, firefighter Thomas Haggerty, president of the North Haven Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 2987, and Januszewski.

Fire officials said Wirtz was battling a

See Funeral, A6

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In Brief

Food bank

The North Haven Community Services Food Bank has a constant need for: mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, coffee, tea, tuna, soup, Chef Boyardee products, instant mashed potatoes, cookies, crackers, macaroni and cheese, protein and granola bars, trail mix, nuts, jerky, peanut butter and graham crackers, dried fruit, fruit snacks, fruit cups, canned fruit, applesauce, juice boxes, pudding cups, peanut butter, jelly, Pop Tarts, cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix and syrup. Items can be dropped off at the Department of Community Services office, at the Town Hall Annex Building, 5 Linsley St., Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Clothing donation

Bring your used clothing donations to Hope Christian Church, 211 Montowese Ave. Hope Christian Church is partnering with St. Pauly Textile Inc. to provide a wood-frame drop-off shed for community use. Accepted items: clothing, shoes, belts, purses, blankets, sheets, curtains, pillowcases and stuffed animals.

Letters Policy

Adelphia Café

476 Washington Avenue North Haven, CT 06473 203-535-0149

Family owned/operated. Former proprietors of the Neptune Diner in Wallingford. Extensive menu for all tastes. Breakfasts, luncheons and special dinners. All baking on premises.

Colony Diner

611 N Colony Road Wallingford, CT 06492 (203) 269-9507 colonydiner.com

Wallingford’s place to go for oldfashioned breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Proudly serving up delicious and hearty meals daily. Voted Best Diner 4 years running by Record

Journal. Open seven days. Breakfast served all day.

Athena II Diner

320 Washington Ave, North Haven, CT 06473 203.239.0663

www.athena2diner.com

Open 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Serving breakfast, lunch, & dinner. Accept Q Cards. Serving North Haven for 30 years. Daily specials and full liquor available.

Email Letters to the Editor to news@thenorthhavencitizen.com. Letters are limited to 300 words. The Citizen will print only one letter per person each month. We reserve the right to edit letters. Letters must be signed and names will appear in print. Include a phone number so The Citizen can contact you for verification. Letters must be submitted by 5 p.m. on Monday to be considered for publication that Friday.

Nearly 1,000 firefighters salute Engine 9 as it passes by on Washington Avenue in North Haven for firefighter Matthias Wirtz on Jan. 3.

Nicole Zappone, The Citizen

Funeral

From

four-family house fire on Quinnipiac Avenue when he collapsed outside the building. He had been operating the water lines. He was provided medical care on the scene and was then taken to Yale New Haven Hospital with life-threatening injuries. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Later in the week, the chief medical examiner listed Wirtz’s cause of death as hypertensive and cardiovascular disease, with additional contributing factors. Additionally, the manner of death is listed as natural causes.

“Firefighter Wirtz was actively working under extreme environmental conditions to protect the lives of the occupants and fellow members of his crew inside the building,” Januszewski said. “Firefighter Wirtz remained steadfast at his post, ensuring their safety with disregard for his

own, and is a hero for his actions and ultimate sacrifice for others.”

Wirtz was a member of Northeast Fire Co. 4. Engine 9, which was used the night of the call on Dec. 26, has been out of service. It was Engine 9 that escorted Wirtz’s fire gear and urn during the procession to St. Elizabeth of Trinity Parish at St. Barnabas Church on

Tuesday morning.

In addition to being a veteran of the fire department, he was a security guard for Hopkins School in New Haven. He taught future firefighters at Gateway Community College’s fire program.

While his passion was firefighting, he also had a musical side and was a snare drummer with the New Haven County Emerald Soci-

ety Pipes and Drums. He was also a member of the Meriden Turner Society, a German club on Old Colony Road.

The society wrote on its Facebook page on Dec. 26 that they were saddened by the passing of Wirtz. Wirtz and his father, Matthias L., had been members of the Turner Society for over 15 years before his father’s passing in late 2021.

Wirtz and his father had been known to frequently come down on Thursday nights to play cards with other members.

When Wirtz became a firefighter with Northeast’s Fire Co. 4 in 1996, he became a decorated department member. On Sept. 11, 2001, Wirtz rushed to Manhattan to assist at Ground Zero.

“Matthias will be greatly missed by the members of the Meriden Turner Society, but his bravery will forever live on with all that knew him. Thoughts and prayers go out to the entire Wirtz family, as well as his brothers and sisters in the North Haven Fire Department,” the Meriden Turner Society wrote on their Facebook page.

Members of the New Haven County Emerald Society Pipes and Drums were pre-

sent at the funeral and spoke about the loss of their member.

“Matthias was a 20-year member of the band and was a snare drummer,” Band Manager Mike Torino said. “He was just a great person.”

Thomas Gorman, captain of the Somerville Fire Department in Massachusetts, said it was a matter of two hours before he found out about Wirtz.

“Word travels fast in the fire circle, and when I found out about it on Twitter, I immediately made plans for our department to come over.

The Somerville department came to North Haven on Monday night and met with North Haven Fire Department members. Members that traveled to North Haven visited the North Haven Elks Lodge and met with Haggerty, the North Haven firefighters ’ union president.

Januszewski said that the condolences have been overwhelming and said in a statement that throughout the rest of the day, he and any other Chief Officer of the North Haven Fire Department would not be available for comments or interviews.

nzappone@record-journal.com 203-317-2212

In

North Haven’s Northeast Fire Co. 4 escorts Engine 9 carrying the urn containing the remains of Matthias Wirtz down Washington Avenue on Jan. 3 in a procession to St. Elizabeth of Trinity Parish at St. Barnabas Church.

Nicole Zappone, The Citizen

Late principal remembered at ceremony

By Kate Ramunni Record-Journal staff

WALLINGFORD The love for Pond Hill School Principal Kristin Toscano Vollero was apparent Monday evening when several hundred people gathered for a candlelight vigil to honor the educator who died on Christmas Eve.

Vollero, 47, led the school for the past five years. Six months ago she was diagnosed with cancer, and she spent the past 70 days in the hospital before succumbing to the disease on Dec. 24.

“I know that everybody who is here tonight has a story they could share about Kristin,” said Pond Hill interim principal Gregory Dirkson. “I have been an active listener as people have shared how Kristin has guided and supported them.”

Before her role as principal of Pond Hill, Vollero worked at the Bernadette Parochial School, New Haven Public Schools and North Haven Public Schools.

Vollero taught sixth and second grade in North Haven from 2000 to 2013 and prior to her role as Pond Hill principal, she worked at the Augusta Lewis Troup K-8 School in New Haven as an administrative intern. She had also worked as an instructional coach in New Haven, showing teachers the best instructional practices.

“The novel of Pond Hill for the last five years was written in conjunction with hers and both were authored by her,” Dirkson said. “At the heart of the text are themes of inspiration and support and smiles and love and admiration and family and fight and sparkle and courage. ”

A candlelight vigil at Pond Hill School on Monday honored the memory of late principal Kristin Vollero, who died on Dec. 24,2022atage47afterbattlingcancer. Kate Ramunni, Record-Journal

Killing

From A1

Salcedo and Matta face murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges and are being held on a $2 million bond.

"We would like to thank the family and loved ones of Davonte Warren for their patience and trust in our North Haven Police Department’s

Investigators. We are humbled to provide them with justice today as we announce the arrest of two men who are responsible for the murder of Davonte Warren on July 17, 2021," the NHPD stated on Jan. 4.

"Since his murder, not a day went by without investigators saying the name Davonte Warren. We hope these arrests display our commitment to seeking jus-

tice against those who bring violence to North Haven. We will be relentless in our pursuit of offenders, and our memory will not fade over time. We will leverage any

Vigil

From A7

“Every time we tell her story, she is present in this building and in this community,” Dirkson said.

Vollero was not the first member of her family to work at the school, her father told the crowd.

“What most people don’t know is that Kristin was not the first member of our fam-

and all resources available to us, and will hold those accountable for their actions."

Responding to a report of gunfire on Dixwell Avenue on July 17, 2021, North Haven officers discovered a car crashed on the Rt. 40 connector. The crashed vehicle was occupied by Warren, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses told police they saw a vehicle pull up next to Warren and two occupants fire several shots at before

speeding off.

"After a long and complex investigation, detectives identified the men who were together in the suspect vehicle who are responsible for the murder," the NHPD stated.

"We are thankful for the many agencies who assisted in this investigation ... It is through these partnerships we are able to keep our communities safe and remove violent offenders from our streets."

ily to enter the halls of Pond Hill Elementary School. Exactly 50 years ago I was a student teacher here,” Joseph Toscano said.

The family has been overwhelmed with the response from the community to her illness and death, Toscano said.

“On behalf of our entire family, I cannot tell you how appreciative we are of the many, many I can’t even count the creative and joy-

ful, bountiful things that the staff, the people here, the parents, students, the administration have done,” he said. “My wife and I literally couldn’t believe it that each night there was something more creative than the day before. Quite frankly, it was one of the few things that made Kristin smile.”

Vollero’s husband Salvatore was emotional talking about his late wife.

“I would do anything to have one more day” with her, he tearfully told those gathered. “She was always a guiding light for me to do what was right. Whenever you need her, just think about her, please.”

Kristin Vollero loved music from the 1980s, Salvatore Vollero said. “It got her pumped up for work every day,” he said. “Do me a favor, if you’re thinking about Kristin, find your favorite ‘80s song, blast it, sing it loud. She will be there, I promise.”

Despite her illness, Vollero was determined to return to Pond Hill as its principal, her father said.

“She faced setback after setback, and she would come back until the very end, always believing she was coming back to this school as principal to the people, the students, the parents, the staff that she loved, and we know through your actions over the last six months that you loved her,” he said.

kramunni@record-journal.com

Amari Salcedo Jr. Deane Matta Jr.

More Local Coverage

LEGAL NOTICE

TOWN OF NORTH HAVEN ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Notice is hereby given that the North Haven Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a Public Hearing on Thursday, January 19, 2023 at 7:30 p.m., at the Mildred A. Wakeley Community and Recreation Center, 7 Linsley Street, in Room #2 at which time and place opportunity will be given to those who wish to be heard relative to the following applications:

PUBLIC HEARINGS:

1. #22-12 Application of Michael & Helene Katz, Applicants & Owners, relative to 12 Donmar Court, (Map 96, Lot 34), per Section 2.1.1.9, requesting a rear yard setback variance of 9.2’ to permit a rear yard setback of 15.8’ where 25’ is required. R-20 Zoning District.

2. #22-13 Application of Grace & Jason Harrington, Applicants & Owners, relative to 16 Alexander Drive, (Map 30, Lot 12), per Section 2.1.1.9, requesting a side yard setback variance of 1.14’ to permit a side yard setback of 20.86’ where 22’ is required. R-40 Zoning District.

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