Donald McCurdy Obituary
Donald McCurdy, of New Hartford, CT, passed away peacefully at his home on September 2, 2025, at the age of 95. Born in Abington, PA on December 29, 1929, he was the son of Ruth Whitaker McCurdy and Robert McCurdy Jr. He was predeceased by his loving and exceptionally patient wife of 70 years, Jo Cena Benge McCurdy, and by his three brothers, Robert, Gilbert and Fredrick. He is survived by his children, Robin McCurdy Protz, Craig McCurdy (Judi Mazur), Michele Gersky (Michael), Holly Chalder (Glenn), Cristy Reiter (Bryan Firestone), his fourteen grandchildren and his eleven great-grandchildren.
Don was a graduate of Germantown Academy in Fort Washington, PA, where he played football, and Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN, where he received his degree in mechanical engineering in 1951. Don and Jo met and fell in love at Purdue. As a freshman, Jo picked Don, who she said was the cutest upperclassman working at the bookstore, to wait on her. Don was instantly smitten. After nine months of Don's extraordinary wooing, Jo was head over heels and she and Don married on November 3, 1951, at the Santa Barbara, CA courthouse with a cleaning lady as their witness.
While in California, Don worked at Douglas Aircraft and Piasecki Helicopter. He and Jo moved their family to Langhorn, PA in 1955 where Don advanced his career with The Nesbitt Company. In 1960 Don and Jo relocated to Avon, CT and Don continued to work for Nesbitt until 1963 when he opened his own company, McCurdy Sales and Engineering, which he renamed Environmental Systems Corporation (ESC) in 1972. Don was soon joined in the business by his son, Craig, and they worked together for 51 years, growing ESC into a pioneering force in the integrated building systems business.
Don would tell the story of a bet he won, where the prize was supposed to be a puppy, but when the person showed up to make good on the bet, a pony was delivered instead. Rather than refusing to take it, Don built a small corral in the back yard of his suburban home for the pony. The neighbors were not thrilled. Jo and Don loved the addition of this new pet and decided they wanted to become more involved with animal husbandry and farming, so they moved to their beautiful forever home in New Hartford, CT in 1969. There the pony was joined in the barn by horses, cows, pigs, goats, chickens, turkeys and ducks. Jo, being an Indiana farm girl, showed Don the ropes on animal care and Don took to it quickly, naming his first pig, Maryjane, after his first-grade sweetheart. Don was a bit of a workaholic, going into the office all day and returning home to mow, muck, rake, sand, patch, paint, milk, feed, water, trim, sweep, shovel and scrape and he loved it.
Don was known for his outgoing nature. He would talk to anyone, anywhere, about almost anything, which often led to lively and interesting conversations. He never worried about anything which stupefied the members of his family who excelled at worrying. He was a pro at carrying infants like footballs, carving meat, fixing almost anything, handstand walking off the diving board, playing the piano, making his mother's coleslaw and dancing like a maniac. Don was honest, hard-working, clever, amazingly generous and eternally optimistic. He was a die-hard fan of Elvis and UCONN women's basketball.
The family would like to recognize and thank the following amazing women: our sister, Michele (for overseeing Don's care and ensuring he was always in good hands), Sandra Ledger (for increasing Don's chances of getting into heaven), Sandy Stewart (for driving Don down every road marked "private"), Paula Blass (for brightening Don's day with visits by her grandson), Darleen Decker (for keeping Don on his toes) and especially Cindy Zajac, Don's home manager and main caregiver (for keeping Don laughing, happy, well-fed and incredibly well cared for. Her exceptional dedication, hard work and loving care were remarkable). Don always commented that he had the best care anyone could wish for and that was true. Special thanks also to McLean Hospice, Simsbury, CT for making Don's last months peaceful and happy.
A celebration of Don's life will be held on Saturday, November 8th at Raymond Family Farm, 18 Ramstein Road, New Hartford, CT, beginning at 12:00 p.m., with a luncheon reception to follow.
Published by WFSB on Sep. 2, 2025.