Samuel S. Simonetta

02/25/2005

Samuel S. Simonetta, 92, of 10 Storm View Road died Friday at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield. Born in Pittsfield on March 2, 1912, son of Raffaele and Raffaela Manella Simonetta, he attended local schools. A Navy veteran of World War II, he was a chief petty officer and a ship fitter with the Seabees' 7th Battalion in the Pacific, serving in Samoa, the Solomons and New Hebredes during his first tour in 1942. On his second tour, he went to Taipan and Okinawa. He also was in the Navy Reserve for 20 years. Mr. Simonetta was employed for 40 years as a steel worker in the power transformer department at GE, retiring in 1975. He also repaired radios and televisions. He was a communicant of North American Martyrs Church. He was appointed a deputy sheriff in 1979 and was a member of the Berkshire County Deputy Sheriffs' Association. He also was a member of VFW Post 448 and the GE Pensioners' and Quarter Century clubs, and was a Yankees fan. An avid fisherman, he was a member and former president of the Pittsfield Sportsmen's Club and was presented with a plaque for his many years of service. He was instrumental in bringing wild turkeys and pheasant to the Berkshires and stocking the brooks with trout every year. He and his wife, the former Gretchen Groote, were married Nov. 12, 1955, in Pittsfield. Besides his wife, he leaves a daughter, Tina Simonetta of Plymouth, a stepdaughter, Gretchen Betts of Crossville, Tenn., and three grandchildren. FUNERAL NOTICE -- Samuel S. Simonetta died in Pittsfield on Friday, Feb. 25, 2005. Beloved grandfather to Samuel Knollmeyer, Aaron Newman and MarcaEarley. Calling hours will be tomorrow, Feb. 28, from 4 to 7 at DWYER FUNERAL HOME. Burial will be in Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to HospiceCare in the Berkshires in care of the funeral home.

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