Obituary: Joseph R. Carmen, 50, of Wallingford

WALLINGFORD, CT - (From North Haven Funeral Home): Joseph R. Carmen, 50, of Wallingford, passed away peacefully on Sunday, October 11, 2020, at Yale-New Haven Hospital. He was the beloved husband of Denise R. Breunig Carmen.

Joseph was born in Rochester, New York on July 20, 1970 and was the son of Richard D. and Patricia Dray Carmen.

A graduate of United States Military Academy at West Point, Joseph served as a Captain in the US Army in the 10th mountain division of the infantry. He was proud to have the title of Army Ranger. He earned a master’s degree from Southern Connecticut State University in education.

Joseph worked for Texas Instruments, Cintas, and General Electric before making a career change to Education. He had a passion for teaching which started in the Bridgeport Public School System.

His natural ability to be a leader led him to a principal position at Our Lady of Fatima School in Wilton and Immaculate High School in Danbury. He earned numerous education awards to include the Theodore and Margaret Beard Excellence in Teaching Award, and was a Principal of a Blue Ribbon School.

At the time of his passing he was the Interim Assistant Vice President for Quinnipiac University Online Programming, Director of Infinite Learning and served on the Leadership Council at Quinnipiac University.

His true love was coaching at Yalesville Little League, Webber Basketball, and Ulbrich Travel Basketball. He served on the Board of Yalesville Little League for numerous years.

Loving father of Tyler J. and Ryan T. Carmen. Brother of Jeffrey Carmen, Dr. Melissa Richards and her husband Dr. Michael Richards. Joe was a loving uncle to numerous nieces and nephews.

The visiting hours will be Thursday, Oct. 15 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at The Havens Family, North Haven Funeral Home, 36 Washington Avenue.

Family and friends are invited to go directly to St. Bridget of Sweden Parish, 175 Main Street, Cheshire on Friday morning, Oct. 16 at 11:30 a.m. to attend a Mass of Christian burial. (church limited to 200 people, masks and social distancing required for all services) Interment will be private and at the convenience of the family.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be to Yalesville Little League League P.O. Box 4065 Yalesville Station, Wallingford, CT 06492 or the American Cancer Society 825 Brook Street I-91 Tech Ctr. #3 Rocky Hill, CT 06067.