John Angelo Vino

1/23/1942 - 12/18/2023

Stonington - John Angelo Vino, beloved husband of Cynthia Anne Browne, passed away Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. John was born Jan. 23, 1942, in The Bronx, N.Y. He was the eldest of five children.

John's grandparents, Giovanni and Anna Vino, migrated with their children from Bari, Italy, and settled in New York in the early 1900s. They began an ice company and delivered by horse and wagon. John's father, Frank Sr., transformed that business into Vino Trucking while raising his family on Long Island, N.Y.

As a young boy John helped his father support the family by delivering groceries and ice. As a teen, John learned how to lay stone and brick working alongside Italian masons on Long Island. In high school, John excelled in sports, especially football and wrestling. He was inducted into the West Islip Athletic Hall of Fame in 1974. He continued club wrestling while attending night school and became the 168-pound champion in the New York Metropolitan area. He won a football scholarship at the University of Bridgeport and earned a bachelor's degree in education. There he founded, coached and captained an undefeated wrestling club. He went on to complete a master's degree at the University of Connecticut.

John built a career around his love of sports: first, coaching football, wrestling, and lacrosse at the University of Connecticut, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Wesleyan University; second, in sporting goods sales, representing Resilite Sports Products for decades. He was widely respected in the New England region as a tough but fair referee at high school wrestling matches for 40 years. He formed many friendships with coaches and wrestlers alike during this time. John was also instrumental in creating annual gatherings and service awards for wrestling officials through the Connecticut Interscholastic Wrestling Officials Association (CIWOA). In 2003, surrounded by his entire family, John received the Lifetime of Service to Wrestling Award from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

In his later years, John took up golf and pursued the game with his typical passion and competitive spirit. He continuously practiced throughout the warmer months at the driving range to improve his swing and move up the ranks in his golf league. In addition to his wrestling community, the golf league became a family of friends that John truly adored.

While working with special education youth at the Mansfield Training Center, John met Cynthia Browne. They shared a love of helping young people that blossomed into a 56-year marriage. In Lebanon, they raised two daughters, Liz and Lisa. John joined and later became the president of the local Lions Club, and he and Cindy enjoyed a wonderful circle of friends in this small rural town. John and his family loved spending summertime along the shoreline, camping in Niantic, and kayaking around Rhode Island. They were longtime members of Seaside Beach Club, and this became their favorite place to spend time with friends. John and Cindy took regular trips to Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and Cape Cod. In 2000, they made Stonington their home where they could be closer to their daughters and grandchildren.

John's loss weighs heavily on all who knew him. He was a profoundly kind, devoted and principled man who loved his family, cherished his friends, and always asked about the people around him. John was charismatic, quick to smile and connected easily with everyone.

John is survived by his wife Cynthia; his daughters, Liz Vino-Greene (Bruce) and Lisa Vino-Mancini (Jason); grandchildren, Sofia and Ethan Greene; siblings, Frank (Jackie), Tony (Mary Ellen) and Anne (Joseph); and his nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother Raymond; and parents, Frank Sr. and Santa Anna Vino.

Please send condolences to Mrs. John Vino: 18 Grandview Park, Stonington, CT 06378. Information for the celebration of his life in the spring will be shared with family and friends in the coming month.