Clarence Getz
Clarence M. Getz, a longtime Ridgefielder who was active in the community, died Jan. 11. He was 88 years old.
Born on March 7, 1925, Mr. Getz spent his childhood in an orphanage outside Baltimore, Md. In 1945, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving in Europe in 1946 and later in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. He retired from the Army in 1968 after serving 23 years.
While stationed in Italy, he met and married Maria Luisa Pescarmona. In 1967 his wife and children moved from Heidelberg, Germany, to Ridgefield where he joined them upon his military retirement.
In 1968, Mr. Getz joined the Perkin-Elmer Corporation as a material planner, working 22 years and retiring in 1990.
A Ridgefield resident for the past 46 years, Mr. Getz was a member of Jesse Lee Memorial United Methodist Church and for many years ran the used furniture area at the church’s Yankee Peddler Fair.
He was a member of the Ridgefield VFW Post 3052 and marched while carrying the American flag in the annual Memorial Day Parade for many years. He was also a member of Jerusalem Lodge of Masons, No. 49.
A lifelong baseball enthusiast, he enjoyed coaching in the Ridgefield Little League in the 1970’s. A devoted New York Giants baseball fan, he was at the Polo Grounds on Oct. 3, 1951 and saw Bobby Thompson’s famous pennant-clinching home run.
Mr. Getz enjoyed traveling with his wife on yearly trips to Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco, Mexico, and to the family beach house outside Rome, Italy. “While in Italy, Clarence made it a personal quest to consume as much gelato as humanly possible,” his family said.
Besides his wife of 57 years, Mr. Getz is srvived by his daughter Vivian and son-in-law James Bambino of Brewster, N.Y., and Altamonte Springs, Fla.; granddaughters Whitney Young of Brighton, Mass., and Brooke Young, of Danbury; his son Mark Getz and grandsons Brett Getz and Kyle Getz of Ridgefield. A son, Paul Getz, died in 2011.
“He will always be remembered by those who knew him for his humble, down-to-earth nature; his faith and deep love for God, his country, his family and friends,” his family said.
The Rev. Bill Pfohl will lead a memorial service at Jesse Lee Memorial United Methodist Church on Saturday, Feb. 1, at 10 a.m.