Obituaries

Carrie Wilcox, 'Awesome' Naugatuck Police Dispatcher, Dies at 30

Services for the Naugatuck resident will take place Jan. 24 and Jan. 25. Meanwhile, the community is rallying behind the Wilcox family.

When Carrie Wilcox died Friday it shocked those who knew the outgoing 30-year-old.

"It's unbelievable," said Naugatuck Police Lt. Bryan Cammarata. "It's very much out from left field to be hit with this ... no one expected her to not be around."

Like most at the department, Cammarata got to know Wilcox over the past 10 years that she worked as a dispatcher. And while the dispatchers aren't police officers, Cammarata said Wilcox was considered one of them.

"In our eyes ... she was one of us," he said. "She's definitely missed."

A Naugatuck resident, Wilcox was one of five dispatchers.

"Every day that she worked she would bring 100 percent," Cammarata added. "She was an awesome dispatcher. She always stepped up. It's just the type of person she was."

Wilcox died Jan. 17 — just shy of a month after she lost her father, Thomas, and about two months after her mother, Debbie, passed away. 

A daughter of the late Thomas Wilcox and the late Debbie (Ruccio) Wilcox, she is survived by two sisters, Kelly Mento of Naugatuck and Shannon L. Wilcox and her fiancé, Bill Cook of Bristol, as well as her paternal grandmother, Carolyn Wilcox, and her maternal grandmother, Patricia Dunn. She will also be deeply missed by her special niece, Madison, and several aunts, uncles, cousins and all her friends, who were like family, at the Naugatuck Police Department.

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Inspired to help a family that continues to give despite being dealt so much pain, a friend, Jenny Ann, established a fundraiser. And the community has opened their hearts — and wallets.

As of noon on Thursday, $9,295 has been raised toward an initial goal of $10,000.

"Together we are making a difference for this family," Jenny Ann wrote Wednesday on the fundraising page. "Every kind word, every donation is a step toward healing from this terrible tragedy."

Funeral Services Planned
 
Memorial services will also offer the community an opportunity to pay their respects. Friends may call at the Buckmiller Brothers Funeral Home, 82 Fairview Ave. in Naugatuck, on Friday, Jan. 24, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The funeral will take place at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 25, at St. Francis of Assisi Church, 318 Church St., Naugatuck. Everyone is asked to meet directly at the church. Burial will be in St. James Cemetery.

Service information comes courtesy of the Buck Miller Brothers Funeral Home of Naugatuck.


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