The Board of Selectman (BOS) has referred a request for a memorial bench for former Guilford educator and first selectman Carl Balestracci, Jr., to the Green Committee for consideration. Balestracci died in 2019, and his legacy to the town and the many residents whose lives he touched needs a fitting remembrance, according to family, friends, and town officials.

Balestracci was a Guilford icon going all the way back to his days as a student at Guilford High School (GHS). He was class president of 1958 for all four years of high school, he served in the U.S. Air Force, and he was a long-time educator in New Haven and Guilford serving as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and principal during his tenure.

Balestracci ran for first selectman of Guilford shortly after retiring from teaching and served three terms in that position.

He continued serving on the Board of Selectmen among numerous other civic capacities, including serving on the Democratic Town Committee, the Guilford Keeping Society, and, for 19 years, the Guilford Police Commission.

Balestracci was the prime motivator in starting the GHS Fencing Program in 1976, serving as head coach from 1976 to 1987 and as president of the Connecticut Division of the U.S. Fencing Association from 1979-1987. Balestracci also worked on the campaign staffs of U.S. senators Chris Dodd and Abe Ribicoff, Connecticut Governor Ella Grasso, and U.S. Congressman Emilio Daddario.

Balestracci was also a published author, winemaker, drummer, and woodcarver, among other pursuits.

First Selectman Matt Hoey said the matter will next go through the Green Committee and then back to the BOS.

“We’ve referred it to the Green Committee for their evaluation. The BOS uses the Green Committee to run certain ideas past for use of the green, and they have helped us develop the policies for memorials and such on the green,” Hoey said. “We don’t expect much of an issue, as there are other benches and memorials of this type on the green.”

Balestracci was such a beloved and honored member of the community on many levels that memorializing one of the town’s most important citizens is a fitting tribute, according to Hoey.

“Carl exemplified all that is good about Guilford. His sense of pride in the community, his sense of history and all of the contributions he made as an individual need recognition. His teaching, his administrative services for the school district and boards and commissions dating back decades, including his service as first selectman,” Hoey said. “Carl certainly deserves a bench, if not a lot more. He was a great example of someone who loved his community.”