Ron Pugliese of Southbury Receive Prestigious 2014 Lewis Dibble Award from Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce

The Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce, an affiliate of the Waterbury Regional Chamber,has announced that Ronald J. Pugliese, president and CEO of the Naugatuck Economic Development Corporation, is recipient of the Chamber’s prestigious 93rd annual Lewis A. Dibble Award. The Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce’s Lewis A. Dibble Award is presented each year in recognition of an individual’s outstanding contributions to the business and socioeconomic well-being of Naugatuck.

Mr. Pugliese will receive his coveted award on Thursday, January 8 beginning with cocktails at 5:30 p.m. and the awards program and dinner at 6:30 p.m. Yvette Wilmot of Sarracco Mechanical Services and chairwoman of the Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce for the past two years will also be recognized at the dinner for her contributions to the Chamber. The Naugatuck Chamber’s Annual Meeting and Lewis A. Dibble Awards evening will be held at the Crystal Room at 98 School Street in Naugatuck. Over the past thirty two years, this annual celebration dinner has grown to become one of the most prestigious business events in the Naugatuck community.

The highlight of the January 8th dinner meeting will be the presentation of the Dibble Award, presented to a local leader in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the business and socio-economic well-being of Naugatuck. Ron Pugliese will receive the 2014 Dibble Award for his dedication and leadership to enhance economic development in the borough of Naugatuck. Additionally, the Chamber will celebrate the success of its 2014 programs and acknowledge members of their retiring and incoming board of directors.

Lewis A. Dibble founded the Naugatuck Chamber in 1921 and since 1976 the Chamber has honored his leadership by recognizing a key leader in the local community. Past award recipients include Mayor Robert Mezzo (2013), David Prendergast (2012), Laurie Yelding (2011), Thomas Sarracco (2010), John Roman (2009), Jay Carlson, III (2008), Harry Cashin (2007), Rocco Corso (2006), Terry Barber (2005), Rebecca Zandvliet (2004), John Ford (1995), Robert Sutherland (1997), Frederick D. Zonino (1992), and Dr. Solomon Aordkian (1985).

Born in Waterbury, Ronald Pugliese graduated from local schools and Western Connecticut State College with a degree in education. After teaching in Waterbury including one year at Sts. Peter and Paul School, he worked in the Alloy Foundries Division of the Eastern Company in Naugatuck from 1977-1979 after moving to Naugatuck in 1976. From 1980-1985 he worked in metal sales at Standard Metals in Hartford, and at Connecticut Tube Products from 1985-1991. In May 1987, he became general manager of that company and then president in November of that year.

Pugliese left the metal field in 1991 to become president of the statewide trade association, Connecticut Retail Merchants Association. In that role, he managed all the lobbying and marketing for the Association and all public relations for the Connecticut retail industry. In 1994, he joined Household International, which later became HSBC and left the company in 2009 when HSBC exited the consumer finance industry. At HSBC, he was senior vice president of government relations with responsibility for all of New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Michigan and Minnesota. Pugliese was also president of the Credit Industry Research Council and for many years chairman of the New England Financial Services Association. In 2010, he became president of the East Hartford Chamber of Commerce until his 2011 appointment by Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary as Director of Economic Development for the City of Waterbury.

Presently, Ron Pugliese is president and CEO of the Naugatuck Economic Development Corporation, a public private partnership that provides economic development services to companies interested in relocating to Naugatuck, plus assistance to local companies looking to expand, and the provision of marketing and environmental advice to the Town.    

Previously, Pugliese was a member of the Board of Mayor and Burgesses in Naugatuck from 1983-1989; Democratic Town Chairman in Naugatuck; president of the United Way of Naugatuck and Beacon Falls; president of WARC in Waterbury; and a member of the Connecticut State University Board of Trustees from 1997-2011.

Ron Pugliese and his wife Janice have resided in Southbury since 2007, where Ron served as a member of the Southbury Board of Selectmen and as chair of the Southbury Charter Revision Commission. Presently he is chair of the Palace Theater Board of Directors in Waterbury, chair of the Western Connecticut State University Foundation Board, and formerly served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Goodwin College in East Hartford.

Married since 1972 the Pugliese’s are the proud parents of three sons, Jay, a detective in Naugatuck and married to Rachel; Gregg, Social Studies curriculum director for the Fairfield school system, married to Jen; and Jeffrey, a Chamber of Commerce executive in Middletown, married to Katie; and grandparents to five grandsons, Ben, Max, Sam, Hayden and Evan.

Premiere sponsors of the Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner are Sarracco Mechanical Services and Naugatuck Valley Savings and Loan.

The cost for the Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Dinner is $75/person. To register for the Thursday, January 8th Lewis A. Dibble Award and Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Dinner, visit the Naugatuck Chamber of Commerce website, www.naugatuckchamber.com.

 

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Submitted by Newtown, CT

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