Harvey Stephen Martin

Harvey Stephen Martin
1950 - 2025
On Sept. 24, 2025, Harvey Stephen Martin peacefully left this world after an eight and a half-year battle with lung cancer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Harvey enjoyed Bridgeport highlights like the Annual P. T. Barnum parade and Seaside Park where he had his first job as a summer camp counselor. His professional career was as a hospital pharmacist starting at Bridgeport Hospital, then Greenwich Hospital and spending the majority of his career at The Hospital of St. Raphael where he retired from the merged Hospital of St. Raphael and Yale. He served his professional community as an active member of the Connecticut Society of Hospital Pharmacist becoming its president from 1986-1987. He graduated from UCONN School of Pharmacy and earned advanced degrees at St. John's University and Quinnipiac University.
The two things Harvey loved most in life were his family and music. He leaves behind his loving wife, Joanna Lombardozzi Martin, with whom he celebrated nearly 49 years of marriage, his two daughters, Michele Donlan and her partner Robert, Christine Calabrese and her husband Michael and his son, Steven J. Martin and his wife Jianine. Harvey enjoyed his eight grandchildren of whom he was very proud: Michael Donlan, Tyler Donlan, Matthew Donlan, Sofia Calabrese, Rocco Calabrese, CJ Martin, Santino Martin and Matteo Martin. Harvey is predeceased by his parents, Sidney and Lillian Martin, and survived by his loving brother Alan Martin and his wife Judy. He was grateful to have them all in his life. He enjoyed attending the concerts and sporting events of his children and grandchildren from their preschool years to their college years and beyond. Cheering them on no matter what they were doing was one of his favorite things to do.
Music became an interest early in life when he took trombone lessons and played in the junior symphony orchestra in Bridgeport as a child. He later played in high school and in college as a member of the UCONN Marching Band where he had the opportunity to travel to Europe with the band playing before Queen Elizabeth and across Europe. As a young man out of college he continued to play each summer with the Southern Pops Orchestra and a group of jazz players at the University of Bridgeport. After a nearly a 20-year hiatus from playing Harvey joined a big band that he enjoyed playing with until very recently. That band was Tuxedo Junction, and he played trombone with them for many years first at Bill's Seafood in Clinton and then at the VFW in Guilford. He enjoyed all the friends he made in the music community especially Dr. G (Gary Grippo) whom he played with a few times a year at Quattro's in Guilford. There was always a great turnout of friends and family when Harvey played, and he loved an audience of people he knew and loved.
Thank you to the many doctors and nurses at Smilow who cared for Harvey, especially Dr. Harold Tara and Dr. Anne Chiang.
Burial will be private, but friends and family are invited to a Celebration of Life to be held at the VFW at 104 Mill Rd. in Guilford on Sunday, Oct. 5 from noon to 3 p.m. In lieu of flowers, Harvey's family requests donations be made to the Guilford Foundation for a scholarship to be named in Harvey's honor given to a graduating Guilford High School senior each year who participated in the instrumental music program.