Robert Andrew Mazurek Sr., 87, of North Haven, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at MidState Medical Center in Meriden. He was the beloved husband of 50 years to Joan Ricci Mazurek. Robert was survived by his two sons, Robert Mazurek, Jr., and Drew Mazurek; and many cousins, nephews, and nieces. He was preceded in death by his father, Andrew Mazurek; his mother, Mary Pawlowicz Mazurek; and his sister, Lorraine Mazurek Kurtin (Anthony Kurtin).

Robert (“Bob”) was born on Chatham Street in Fair Haven, where he lived for 44 years. When he was 11 years old, Bob would take the trolley with his dad from downtown to the Yale Bowl each Saturday in the fall to watch the Bulldogs take on their opponents of the week. This tailgating tradition, in the YUAD VIP lot still lives on today with his family and friends.Bob was an avid softball player, a centerfielder in the New Haven bar league with such teams as Murphy’s Rock Garden Grill and Lou’s Lodge.He was a proud member of the United States Army National Guard for 6 years, attaining the rank of Sergeant First Class before his honorable discharge.Along the way, Bob worked for the phone company, the railroad, and the New Haven Terminal. In the 1960s, he was a New Haven Sheriff during the famous Bobby Seale Black Panther trial.

 He joined the New Haven Fire Department in 1964 and it became his career. In 1967, he, along with fellow firefighter James Reardon, received commendation for rescuing two children hiding from a fire under their bed in the Hill. In 1973, he was honored at a Firemen’s Night at The Elks Lodge in New Haven, where he was a lifetime member. He retired in 1997.

Bob met his wife Joan while he was a bartender at Malone’s in downtown New Haven. He loved bartending and worked for his good friend Eddie Malone for years at Malone’s Famous Bar in the basement on Church Street. He opened the Firehouse Restaurant on State Street in Fair Haven in the 1970s with co-owner Billy Miller.

 He started his final bartending job when he joined, with pleasure, the Waucoma Yacht Club on Front Street in his old beloved Fair Haven neighborhood. He met many new friends at that club and reconnected with many old ones.

 Bob loved his wife and sons more than anything in his life. He followed their baseball and football careers faithfully, coaching them, and never missing a game.  As musicians, Drew on trumpet and Bob Jr. on saxophone, he attended all their concerts, especially at Yale’s Beinecke Library where Drew performed with his quintet “Brass” for over 20 years. Vacations were many: a honeymoon in Bermuda, annual vacations in Cape Cod, trips to Maine and Europe, a cruise, and several trips to California while Drew was a graduate student at Stanford. Bob Jr. planned several cross-country trips to and from Stanford (just for the boys), and they put Joan on a jet in California and sent her home! Bob and his sons traveled several times across the entire country for weeks on end. And let’s not forget the long summers spent with lifelong friends at Double Beach in Branford, of which Bob was a charter member. The late Ray Mazzacane ran the club, and they were all great friends – the Luedees, Espositos, Parcels, John Singleton, Burtons, Urbans, Criscuolos, and many others. They’d watch fireworks on Long Island Sound from Captain Pat Esposito’s overloaded boat. When Double Beach closed, Bob and his family joined Owenego with even more friends – the Martins, O’Connells, McCormacks, Dempseys, and many others.

Visiting hours will be Monday, May 1st from 4:00 to 7:00 PM at The Havens Family North Haven Funeral Home, 36 Washington Avenue. Family and friends are invited to go directly to St. Elizabeth of the Trinity Parish at St. Therese Church, 555 Middletown Avenue, North Haven on Tuesday, May 2nd at 12 noon to attend a Mass of Christian burial and are also invited to attend the committal service immediately following in All Saints Cemetery.