Michael Anthony Pavese

Michael A. Pavese, a Greenwich resident for more than 50 years, died Tuesday, March 2 at Greenwich Hospital at the age of 85. Predeceased by Ann Faith, his loving wife of 46 years, Michael is survived by his daughter, Suzanne Festa (husband Dr. Anthony Festa) of Greenwich, his granddaughter, Lindsey Greco (husband Joseph Greco) of Hoboken, New Jersey, and his sister, Carmela Pavese of Yonkers, New York.

Born in 1936 in New York City, Michael was a graduate of Evander Childs High School in the Bronx. In 1956 he received his undergraduate degree in Business and Economics from Fordham University and went on to do graduate work in Finance at St. John’s University.

Michael began his career in public accounting at Scovell, Wellington & Co. in 1956. He joined Chesebrough-Pond’s Inc. in Manhattan in 1961 as Budget Manager and held a variety of positions throughout his tenure including Budget Director, Director of Long-Term Planning, and Divisional Controller. Ultimately, Michael became Chesebrough’s Corporate Controller and was instrumental in the corporate acquisitions of Ragu, Q-Tips, Bass Shoes, Prince Tennis, and Stouffer Chemical Company. He retired in 1991.

After retirement, Michael did consulting work and also taught Business and Accounting classes at the University of Bridgeport and at the Budget Institute of America in Manhattan.

A man of great faith, Michael served as a financial advisor to St. Catherine of Siena Church in Riverside for over 40 years. He was the Chair of the Finance Committee for three separate terms and then held the position of Trustee for more than 12 years. In fact, he was the recipient of the St. Augustine Medal of Service award bestowed by the Bishop.

He was active in the community throughout his life. He and his wife, Ann Faith, served on the Board of Directors of Greenwich Catholic School and the Greenwich Seniors Club. For many years they also served as Chairs of the Grandparents Committee for the Convent of the Sacred Heart Annual Fund Campaign.

Throughout most of his life, Michael was an avid athlete and sports enthusiast. Having grown up only 4 blocks away from Yankee Stadium, his passion was baseball. In his younger days, he played baseball in the Police Athletic League, the American Legion, on Fordham University’s team, and on various local and city teams. Later, he played not only baseball, but softball and basketball on different teams as well as on company teams in New York and Greenwich. He coached little league, softball, basketball, and tee-ball for youths. A die-hard Yankees fan, he had an impressive memorabilia collection including a prized Babe Ruth-signed photo he got in person as a boy. He was a walking encyclopedia on sports!

Michael traveled extensively with his family, both domestically and abroad, and enjoyed gardening and cooking. He will be remembered for his dedication to his family, deep faith in God, sense of humor, and his unrivaled generosity and kindness.

Funeral Mass Tuesday at 10am at St. Catherine of Siena Church followed by an interment at St. Mary's Cemetery.