Written by Juliana Simone

February 22, 2023

Canton, CT – Long-serving Connecticut General Assembly member, Kevin Witkos, walked into a surprise party on a Saturday afternoon thrown by his wife, Esther, at the Legitimus Brewery. Dozens were on hand to wish the former Senator, House Representative and Canton Board of Education member well. The guest list could have been much longer, but Esther decided to keep it to a smaller group of people she felt served Kevin well while in office or were friends and relatives.

Catered buffet food was in abundance along with a dessert table. Gift bags for guests were on a seperate station. The open bar included fresh beer on tap and spiked cider.

Barkhamsted Republican Town Committee Chair, Juliana Simone, was among the guests who has a long history of helping Kevin transition to the State Senate as well as making sure he was re-elected each time he ran for another term. He was a regular participant in the popular Barkhamsted Independence Day Parade and also would always spend time at the BRTC Riverton Fair booth in October talking to voters. Other guests included veteran State Representative John Piscopo, Colebrook Chairman Chris Johnstone, and long-serving staff members. BRTC VC Dave Moulton also dropped by along with former Waterbury Alderman Jerry Padula, who was a DCP legislative liason and has been a staff attorney with the DCP for fourteen years.

Popular among not only Republicans, he received votes from Independents and Democrats, for his devoted work to the eleven towns he served in the eighth district, his moderate views and genuine friendly personality.

Altogether, Witkos served three terms in the House of Representatives which serves the towns of Canton and Avon (District 17), and seven in the Senate. His highest achievement in the State Senate was the Deputy Senate Republican Leader, second in command to Senate Minority Leader, Len Fasano. Because for the first time in decades the Senate was tied in terms of Elected Senators, there was no majority or minority leader. Both parties had co-chairs for this two year cycle.

Barkhamsted Chair Simone was a Witkos Senate Republican Committee appointee on Public Safety and Security in 2017, which had two of the largest proposals that session which would allow a third casino in the state, and the crumbling concrete foundation issue which left many homeowners with damaged homes.

Witkos, after serving over 25 years as a Sergeant with the Canton Police Department before retiring, started additional part-time work with the utility company, Eversource, where he currently works today. He also tried his hand as a restaurant owner in the Collinsville section of Canton.

Witkos gave a brief but heartfelt speech to his guests expressing how fast twenty years of service flew by. We all wish Kevin well in his future endeavors and thank him for his dedication to the eighth district.