Greenwich's Smiling Face: Bea Crumbine Honored With Proclamation

GREENWICH, CT — Bea Crumbine has played an integral role in representing Greenwich and contributing her time, energy and expertise to enhance the community over the years. After all, she is the official ambassador-at-large for the town.

But after working behind the scenes for so many years, Crumbine was honored last week with a proclamation and her very own day — Bea Crumbine Day — on Sept. 19 at the Young Artists Philharmonic Gala at the Greenwich Water Club.

"It was lovely. It's very touching when you do things for people and the town as I do, and you're not aiming for reward or any kind of notice," Crumbine told Patch of the honor. "I love Greenwich, and I do these things for Greenwich because I think it's just a wonderful community. It means a great deal when the things that are done in essence behind the scenes become noticed and recognized. So it felt very good."

After coming to Greenwich for a year, Crumbine and her husband, Peter, traveled the world for 14 years before eventually coming back and settling full-time in town in 1981.

Since then, Crumbine has been a dedicated supporter of numerous initiatives and organizations, such as the Greenwich Arts Council, the Greenwich Historical Society, the Grace Notes, the Greenwich Choral Society, Palladium Musicum, the Greenwich Symphony, and of course, the Greenwich Young Artists Philharmonic.

"I just look for things that are interesting to do," she said.

One of her greatest accomplishments was helping to establish a sister-city relationship between Greenwich and two small Italian towns, Rose and Morra De Sanctis.

With a love of colonial history, Crumbine had always been fascinated with the post-colonial period in the 1880's when immigrants began arriving from Italy. In Greenwich, they settled and stayed primarily in the Cos Cob and Chickahominy neighborhoods.

Many immigrants helped build the great estates in town, which feature European stone masonry techniques and Italian influences.

"They did change Greenwich immensely," Crumbine said.

Crumbine went online and contacted the mayors of the two Italian towns from which the immigrants came from. She invited the mayors and citizens to come to Greenwich in 2013.

"I invited them to come and do a sister-city moment, to exchange documents, and to give Greenwich quite sincerely a chance to say thank you to these small towns from which extraordinary change had come to Greenwich," Crumbine said.

A few years later in 2018, Crumbine spearheaded an effort to install six historic, 10,000 pound monoliths at the Montgomery Pinetum property in Greenwich.

"It's been a scene of performance events, readings, poetry, music. It's a lovely place for Greenwich residents to sit and relax," Crumbine said.

Another highlight for Crumbine was in 2019 when the London Philharmonic Orchestra performed in Stamford, and she arranged to have a portion of ticket proceeds benefit the Greenwich Young Artists Philharmonic. Several local students also participated in the event.

Crumbine's dedication to music and the arts comes from a desire to help children thrive.

"Studies have been done which have shown that children who play music are less likely to have academic problems, less likely to have drug or alcohol problems. It's a very formative thing," Crumbine said.

During her speech when she accepted her proclamation last week, she quoted poet Henry David Thoreau: In a world of peace and love, music would be the universal language.

"I feel very strongly that it's important for children to have that peace in their lives, if there's a way that they can do so," she said.

Crumbine is also an accomplished opera singer, having performed with groups at the White House, Carnegie Hall, the Vatican for Pope Benedict, and many other venues around the world.

While she no longer sings, her interest in the art of opera remains.

As a new resident at Edgehill, a senior living community in Stamford, the Crumbines have joined a committee that brings opera programming to the Edgehill community.

An opera professor from UConn-Stamford who Crumbine has studied with in the past comes every two weeks and lectures the group on an opera they've chosen.

"So for people who love going into The Met, who can't do it as regularly anymore, or who find the hours are challenging, this is a lovely way to keep up that joy in the music," she said.

Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo presented Crumbine with the proclamation last week. He praised her for her service to the town.

"Bea has been a force for good ever since I can remember. She has been the smiling face for Greenwich, and has been involved with many different endeavors over the years," Camillo told Patch. "Whatever she chose to be involved in, she always led with grace and good cheer. Even ones she didn't lead and she showed up to volunteer for or to support, she always made those efforts stronger just by her presence."

Crumbine said she was grateful for the recognition from the Young Artists Philharmonic, and the proclamation from the town that declared Sept. 19 as Bea Crumbine Day in the town of Greenwich.

"I will celebrate it myself, quietly, every year," Crumbine said with a laugh.