A few days ago the town of East Haven lost Bob Norman, a former Mayor and a great citizen. Bob grew up in CT, and graduated from Hillhouse High School. He served as the anchorman for channel 8 News for 20 years. After his distinguished TV career, Bob successfully ran for mayor of East Haven, where he held office from 1985 to 1991. Always committed to public service, after his mayoral career was over Bob became the head of Veteran's Affairs in CT for 9 years.
I knew Bob Norman very well. In fact, after I graduated law school, the first political campaign that I got involved in was his mayoral campaign. It was during my time making phone calls and running errands for Bob, that I began to get interested in politics. For better or for worse, Bob Norman set me on the path to where I am today.
Bob was such a kind man and a friendly guy. He was a happy face, no matter where you went around town. Most people knew him as, "the anchorman," and he was a guy who really made East Haven his home. The whole town was proud to call him Mayor.
His wake was on Tuesday. There I learned that one of his last wishes was to be buried with a pin that says, "I love East Haven." That's just the way he was, and I can't speak more highly of Bob Norman. He was a politician, but he never was political. He brought everybody together, and I think the town of East Haven is going to sorely miss Bob Norman.
-Len Fasano
