Martin E.

Bennett

Found His Passion In Antique Automobile Restoration

Martin E. Bennett, 84, a longtime Newtown resident, community activist, and consummate restorer of antique automobiles, died April 26, in the Brentwood Rehabilitation Center, Yarmouth, Maine, after a long illness. He was born October 28, 1926, to George Edward and Mary (Connors) Bennett.

 Mr Bennett was an only child, but always was surrounded by a full house of adopted “siblings,” his beloved aunt Anna Connors Winkle and uncle Matthew Winkle, and relatives and friends. He and his family were active parishioners of St Rose of Lima Church.

After he graduated from Fairfield Preparatory School, he went on to serve in the United States Army during the Korean War era, as an automobile mechanic, stationed at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland and in Germany.

He married Patricia O’Donnell and resided in Hamden, Conn., for 25 years, where he worked in the insurance industry as a claims adjuster, and where he raised a family. He later returned to his childhood home in Newtown that he loved so much, became recognized as an outspoken critic of local taxation policies, and immersed himself in his life’s passion of restoring antique cars. His technical skills were exceeded only by his devotion to exacting precision and artistic detail. He maintained his private workshop during his remaining 30 years.

 He is survived by his former wife; three children, Patricia Chiarelli, Sean Bennett, and Maura Wittstein; and four grandchildren.

 A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated in St Rose of Lima Church, Monday, May 2, at 11 am. Interment will follow in St Rose Cemetery. Friends may call in the Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, Sunday, May 1, from 3 to 6 pm.

The Newtown Bee        April 29, 2011