Joseph Chute

1926 - 2021

Joseph G. Chute
Joseph George Chute was born January 13, 1926, to Joseph and Mary Chute, of Greenwich, Connecticut. He died peacefully the evening of Monday, April 12, 2021. In the 95 years between, Joe embraced life with an understanding that every day is a gift best appreciated by living it to the fullest.
First and foremost, Joe was the devoted and loving husband of the late Mary "Maisie" (née Groh) Chute (d. 2015). The two were introduced at a social in Westchester County in 1949 and both were immediately smitten. Though Maisie was dancing with another young man at the time, Joe asked to cut in. Their dance became a courtship, marriage and love that lasted the rest of both of their lives.
It was typical of Joe's style. Never one to sit back and wait for life to come to him, Joe was still underage during World War II when he forged his father's signature on the release allowing him to volunteer for the U.S. Navy. He became a Navy Corpsman and served as a medic with the 5th Marine Division, Second Marine Battalion during the Battle of Iwo Jima. While tending to the fallen on the beach there, Joe was himself seriously wounded and evacuated to a hospital boat. He was awarded the Purple Heart for his service.
Upon returning from the war, Joe completed his high school education at The Edgewood School in Greenwich where he, along with numerous other returning veterans, completed the roster of the school's championship football team. One can only imagine the trepidation other teams likely felt facing Edgewood's "high school" squad of battle-hardened vets. He was awarded a football scholarship to Fairleigh Dickenson University but chose instead to pursue the electrical trade.
It was during this journey towards becoming a Master Electrician that Joe and Maisie met. It was also the reason for their extended courtship – they did not marry until 1952. A man of fierce dedication, Joe refused to ask Maisie to marry him until he was certain he would be able to provide for her and their family. Of course he accomplished both goals.
A lifelong member of Local Union 501 and Local 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Joe would have received his 75-year service pin this summer. He left his mark on buildings large and small in Manhattan (including the 1964 World's Fair), Westchester and Connecticut and loved pointing out the corporate headquarters that he played a role in building.
But nothing was as important to Joe as family. He and Maisie continued their love of dancing throughout their life together – you could always find both of them on the dance floor – and he always made time for their daughter, Deborah, even after long days working construction, ensuring she learned such valuable life lessons as the gift of service, the value of a good book, and the art of throwing a spiral.
Joe was the definition of a true gentleman and will be sorely missed by all who knew him.
Joe is survived by his devoted daughter, Deborah A. Chute of Trumbull; his brother and his wife, John and Susan Chute of Hinsdale, Illinois; his niece, Cynthia Briggs Tulloch of Fairfield; his nephew, Alfred C. Briggs III of Franklin, TN; his nephew John Thomas Chute, Esq., and niece Maureen Chute Camden of Hinsdale, Illinois; and many grandnieces and grandnephews.
In addition to his wife, Joe was predeceased by his infant son, Kevin; his brother, Robert "Deacon" Chute, his sisters Ruth Chute Zedar and Katherine Chute Ennis, and his nephew, Christopher Chute.
Friends are invited to attend his Mass of Christian Burial on Tuesday, April 20, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Michael the Archangel Church, 469 North Street in Greenwich. For those who are not comfortable attending due to Covid, the Mass will be livestreamed by going to the church's website at https://www.stmichaelgreenwich.com. Interment will follow in St. Mary's Cemetery in Greenwich with full Military Honors.
Donations may be made in his honor to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-9959.
To send an online condolence, please visit www.shaughnesseybanks.com.