Nancy Barton, one of the most prominent Democrats in Greenwich who ran for state Senate and served on the town's Board of Estimate and Taxation, died Friday night at Stamford Hospital, family members said. Siblings who gathered at her Old Greenwich home Saturday remembered a warm and loving sister who placed enormous importance on family. Former Selectman Lin Lavery, a longtime friend of Barton and a fellow Democrat, said the town has lost someone who displayed the best in public service. Barton resigned from her post on the BET in early September, citing personal reasons, amid news that the Old Greenwich native was suffering from an undisclosed illness. First Selectman Peter Tesei, a Republican who served with Barton on the BET before becoming selectman in 2007, was saddened that her life was cut short. Barton was president of Stamford-based Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut, which treats children and adolescents who are struggling with behavioral problems. In 2010, Barton ran unsuccessfully for the 36th District state Senate seat held 80 years ago by her grandfather, H. Allen Barton, the last Democrat to represent Greenwich in the General Assembly. During a special vote on Sept. 14, the DTC chose retired hedge fund analyst Sean Goldrick to replace Barton on the party's ticket for the BET ahead of next month's municipal election. Goldrick joined an unopposed slate of six Democrats for the finance board, which is responsible for setting the town's tax rate, considering funding for hundreds of municipal projects, and crafting the town budget.

A Greenwich man who developed an anti-aircraft radar system during World War II that helped Allied forces overcome enemy armies in Europe and the Pacific has died at 95. The twist included antics such as attaching sleds to a car and pulling his delighted daughters over snow-covered roads, Davenport remembered. Lee Davenport was born in Schenectady, N.Y. His war work began in 1941, when Davenport, then a 25-year-old doctoral student at the University of Pittsburgh, was invited to join 30 physics professors at the top secret Radiation Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass., to develop urgently needed warfare technologies using microwave radar. Davenport's assignment was to develop the SCR-584, a radar anti-aircraft system able to track and shoot down enemy planes. A few weeks after D-Day, Davenport, though a civilian, was secretly flown by orders of Gen.Dwight D. Eisenhower to a location five miles behind the Allied front lines in Normandy to test the SCR-584's adapted ability to direct Allied bombers to their targets. After the war, Davenport led Harvard University's nuclear lab, where he oversaw the construction of the second-largest atom smasher in the world. The airplane crashed soon after taking off from Rochester-Monroe County Airport in Rochester, N.Y., Mohawk Airlines Flight 112 flew head-on into a violent thunderstorm, veered out of control and plunged to Earth. Ridgefield residents Robert Stark, 95, and Bette Gollrad, 79 went on numerous trips with Davenport and his wife, Anne, through the years, and they were always struck by Davenport's encyclopedic knowledge of cars and how they worked.

Former state Sen. Emil "Bennie" Benvenuto, a portrait of rags-to-riches success and political ally of Lowell P. Weicker Jr. who was both revered and blackballed by the Republican establishment in town, lost his battle with cancer Tuesday morning. Benvenuto's death spawned an immediate outpouring of remembrances from politicians on both sides of the aisle -- and in the middle -- for the lifelong town resident and veteran public servant. Bevenuto served as deputy commissioner of veterans affairs under Weicker when he was governor, the culmination of a long-standing alliance between the two that rankled fellow Republicans in Greenwich, where Weicker previously served as first selectman. Benvenuto resorted to running under the banner of A Connecticut Party, a splinter group founded by Weicker, after Republicans refused to back him for re-election. Camillo, who represents Cos Cob, eastern Greenwich and parts of Riverside and the downtown, called Benvenuto a gentleman and beloved figure both locally and at the state level. First Selectman Peter Tesei lamented the passing of his fellow Republican. Born June 26, 1931, in Riverside, Benvenuto came from roots so meager that he and his siblings once ate grass because they were hungry, according Sam Romeo, a close friend and fellow Republican.

In 1950, while attending Boston College on the G.I. Bill, he married his childhood sweetheart, Audrey Lutz, also of Dorchester, with whom he went on to have six sons. Following his graduation from BC, the couple moved to Cleveland, OH, where Barron, after a brief stint working in the post office, broke into radio and then television advertising. From 1987, he and his wife divided their time between Greenwich and Jupiter, Fla. Among his many friends, he was regarded as a larger than life character known for his outgoing nature, the warmth of his friendship, and his love of a good story. Friends may call today, Sept. 23 at Leo P. Gallagher and Son Funeral Home, 31 Arch Street, from 2-4 p.m. or from 7-9 p.m. A Mass of Christian burial will take place at St. Michael's Church, 469 North Street, on Saturday, Sept. 24 at 10 a.m. with burial at St. Mary Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Francis and Audrey Barron Scholarship Fund, Fairfield Prep, 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824-5157. Drinkwater was an accomplished secretary and office manager (she never stopped making notes in shorthand), homemaker, cook, seamstress and above all a mother who always focused on taking care of her family. Mrs. Drinkwater was predeceased by her husband John, her sister Evelyn Willmott, brother James (Bud) and his wife Barbara Willmott, brother-in-law Thomas, Henry and Lincoln Drinkwater and sister in-law Betty D. Marr. [...] surviving are lifelong friends Richard Salvatore, of Greenwich, and Karen Dustin, of Randolph, Vt., and special friend Livia Fiordelisi, of Woodbury. Drinkwater's sister Evelyn Willmott wrote of her in 1929: "They took the blue of the sky for your eyes/The gold of the sun for your hair/The glorious hue of a full-blown rose for your blushes passing fair./With an elfin dash for your quaint dear ways, and the grace of the nymph Diane,/ they made you and sent you to light our days, all the lilt, all the life of Pan." Gospodin (Din) Gospodinoff, 90, beloved husband, father and grandfather, died on Sept. 15 at his daughter's home in Florida. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Alzheimer's Association and/or Connecticut Nurserymen's Foundation 251 Hop River Road, Bolton, CT 06043. In recent years, Gray volunteered for Meals on Wheels, the Stuart Public Schools, and the Council on Aging of Martin County, where she served as a board member for over 18 years. A graveside service will be held on Sunday, September 25, at 11 a.m. at Woodland Cemetery in Bellport, N.Y. Those who wish may make contributions in her name to the Council on Aging of Martin County, 900 SE Salerno Road, Stuart, FL 34997. Kaufmann worked for several years in the Administration Office at Rosemary Hall School in Greenwich, and later served as a volunteer for the American Red Cross and the Stamford Hospital. The family extends their deepest appreciation to the many individuals, especially Benjamin Abraha, as well as the staff at Atria Darien and others, who contributed so much to the quality of her life in recent years. Charitable contributions in lieu of flowers may be made to Post 53 Ambulance, P.O. Box 2066, Darien, CT 06820; Noroton Presbyterian Church Post Road, Darien, CT 06820; Zelienople Historical Society, 243 S. Main Street, Zelienople, Pa. 16063. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to GADC River House or Greenwich Hospice. Over the years, he and his wife Anna invested in rental properties, which developed into a new vocation. Other favorite past times included restoring antique cars and furniture, boating and fishing with his son, playing golf, and sharing time with family and friends at the beach. Mr. May then served as New York University's Dean of the Graduate School of Business Administration until 1984. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts or New York Presbyterian Hospital. At age 17, he toured the country playing the eldest son in the road show of Life with Father. After graduation from the Professional Children's School in New York City, he entered Dartmouth College under the V-12 Naval Officers Training Program. Following his graduation from Dartmouth in 1947, he remained in the Naval Reserve and was recalled to active duty during the Korean War. After his discharge from the Navy, he became a production coordinator for NBC Television, where he met many intriguing people through his work on the Today Show. In a change of career, he obtained his MBA from Columbia Business in School in 1956 and joined IBM Corp. as a financial analyst. By 1984, he was program manager of finance and business courses for IBM. After 28 years with IBM, he retired to take the position of Associate Director of Executive Programs at Columbia Business School. Two years later, he became Administrative Director of the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance (The Q Group), where he helped manage their biannual seminars for investment and financial executives. A highlight of the period was the fall seminar of 1990, during which one member, William Sharpe, was awakened by a 3 a.m. call from Sweden, telling him he was a winner of the Nobel Prize in economics. Donations may be made to the Professional Children's School, 132 West 60th St., New York, NY 10023 or to Kearsarge Community Presbyterian Church, 82 King Hill Rd., New London, NH 03257. In her professional life, North was an editor of Harper's Bazaar and held positions in public relations at Allied Chemical and CBS in New York City. North's volunteer work included being a director of the Red Cross Blood Program in Greenwich. In New York City, she taught teenage girls in Harlem gracious living. In Washington she was a member of the American Newswomen's' Association, and The National Cathedral Literacy Program, where she tutored first graders. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital .

Three days earlier he suffered a first heart attack while on a cruise ship out of San Francisco bound for New York City. During WW II he spent three years at Kings Point Maritime Academy and saw sea duty as a Junior Officer on merchant marine ships in the North Atlantic and South Pacific. Starting his business career as an investment banker in Boston, he then moved to NYC as a security analyst with Value Line Investment Advisors for 5 years before joining Booz, Allen & Hamilton (worldwide management consultants). Upon the illness of his father In the early 1960's Brooks came back to Westport to join his father in the family real estate firm, Brooks Inc. The company had already developed Westfair Shopping Center, Westfair Village (the first postwar housing for beneficiaries of the GI bill), and Compo Shopping Center. Upon the death of his father in 1967 Brooks Jr. changed the name of the company to Brooks, Torrey and Scott Inc. and went on to purchase and develop commercial real estate in New York state, other locations in Connecticut and St. Croix, V.I. Following its success, Dexter Brooks served for 35 years as Chairman of Brooks Community Newspapers and Publisher of eight award-winning newspapers in Fairfield County. Locally, he and his wife were "first family" supporters of Near and Far Aid and benefactors of Westport Library's "Booked for the Evening" event each year. In recent years he took up the hobby of creating crossword puzzles and he self-published two books of puzzles which he gave to friends for their amusement. In addition to his wife of 25 years, the former Kathryn Frazer, he is survived by two sons, Torrey Brooks (wife Marcia), of Weston; Scott Brooks (wife Anastasia), of Westport; a daughter, Wendy Harris (husband Dak), of Weston; a stepdaughter, Lori Frazer (husband Christopher Lyman), of Searsmont, Maine.; and a stepson, Marc Frazer (wife Megan), of Seattle. Through his charisma, leadership, grace, and humor he taught individual excellence and instituted numerable programs throughout his career. A member of Bucks Harbor Yacht Club he also served on local boards for the Blue Hill Memorial Hospital, the Parker Ridge Retirement Community, and the Maryann Snow Bates Educational Foundation, which awards scholarships to local residents. Innes practiced Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology in Greenwich from 1964 until 1997, when he retired from private practice. During those years he held multiple leadership positions in local, state and national medical organizations as well as being active in medical education in Greenwich and held an appointment at Yale University. A resident of Greenwich for over 47 years, he was active in multiple local activities including service on the Board of Education, long term membership in the town legislative body, chairmanships of several committees, leadership of the Riverside Community Association, Friends of Greenwich Point and faithful service on the vestry of St. Paul's Episcopal Church. Since retirement, he has been a dedicated volunteer in Riverside Elementary School, reading with first grade students, serving as an outstanding role model through his kind and respectful mentoring. The Innes family extends its heartfelt appreciation to all on staff at Greenwich Hospital for their compassionate care of their colleague. Nigro served in the U.S.Army from December 1954 until 1957 and was assigned to a special unit performing duty with the Adjutant General Corps and the Judge Advocate General Corps. Upon discharge from the army, he worked briefly as an assistant court clerk in the Superior Court at Hartford and Stamford until he entered private practice, primarily with the firm of Heagney, Lennon and Nigro, located in Greenwich. In 1970, Nigro was appointed as the chief prosecutor and later appointed State's Attorney for the Judicial District of Stamford-Norwalk. For 34 years, he served as a Superior Court Judge sitting in many different judicial districts on both civil and criminal matters. Frances Rowella, 89, a lifelong Greenwich resident, died on Sept. 3, 2011 at her home surrounded by her loving family. The family spent its holidays in Bridgehampton, N.Y. where she enjoyed an active social life, and played tennis, paddle tennis, and golf. First she suffered breast cancer in 1976. In 1993 she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and after a two-year fight became part of the three percent of patients who survive the disease, through a combination of experimental treatment and willpower. There will be two celebrations of Robertson's life: the first on September 17, 2011 at 12 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme, Connecticut, and the second to be held over the Thanksgiving period in Bridgehampton, N.Y. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge online at www.pmc.org, by post to Pan-Massachusetts Challenge, PO Box 415570, Boston, Massachusetts 02241-5590; or alternatively, to a charity of your choice. A memorial service and visiting hours will be held tomorrow, Sept. 10 between the hours of 2-4 p.m. at Knapp's Funeral Home in Greenwich. The family requests that memorial contributions be made to the Friends of Nathaniel Witherell, 70 Parsonage Road, Greenwich, CT 06830 or Masonic Home Health & Hospice, 74 Cheshire Rd., PO Box 70, Wallingford CT 06492, or online www.masonicare.org.