Greenwich Honors Late Dan Warzoha With Renaming Of EOC

Find out what's happening in Greenwichwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“Looking around this room, it fills my heart to know just how many lives my dad touched in his service to our beloved hometown… He was never one to seek the limelight, and always shied away from accolades, because to him, he wasn’t just doing his job, he was doing what he loved,” said Warzoha’s son, Stephen, during Wednesday’s ceremony.

“It was here that he was at his absolute best, working with so many of you through some of the most difficult times, be it Superstorm Sandy, the terrorist attacks of 9/11, blizzard after blizzard, after blizzard, after blizzard, COVID. The list goes on and on,” Stephen added.

Warzoha’s wife, Diane, told Patch it was an honor to have the EOC renamed.

“He truly deserved it, but he never would have accepted it. He did what he loved doing. He did it in the name of safety and concern, but it’s so nice to have him recognized,” she said. The Warzoha extended family was also in attendance Wednesday.

State Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-36), First Selectman Fred Camillo, Warzoha’s mother, Claire, and Warzoha’s grandchildren helped to unveil a photo and a framed recognition commemorating the dedication. A plaque will be installed soon, too.

The ceremony also featured several speakers who spoke about Warzoha’s impact on the town.

“He was a colleague, but more than that, he was a friend. People talk about him as a man of Glenville, and he certainly was, but he was a man of Greenwich and we are forever in his debt for all he did for our town,” Camillo said. “He certainly brought our emergency operations up to where it is today. This dedication will forever be a testament to all that Dan Warzoha did for the town of Greenwich and all that he meant to all of us.”

Camillo noted that Warzoha would many times interject humor and his love for sports into conversations, which helped break up the monotony and seriousness of meetings. Camillo, a noted New York Yankees fan, remembered fond conversations with Warzoha about their love for the Bronx Bombers.

Scott Appleby, Director of Bridgeport’s Emergency Operations Center and a member of the regional leadership team for emergency management, said he looked at Warzoha as a mentor.

The two worked closely together during emergency events, and they developed a friendship, often going to Yankees games or chatting about sports, too.

But what stood out the most to Appleby was Warzoha’s attention to detail in planning for the worst.

“He had such an operational strategic mind. He knew when something was happening and how to be prepared. He always was fast ahead of the game, and he knew what it meant to save lives,” Appleby said.

Whether it was planning for rescues by all-terrain vehicles, or even sending out toboggans to reach people in need of help in snow and ice, Warzoha planned for everything.

“He always wanted to ensure that Greenwich was as prepared and resilient as it possibly could be, when he knew that maybe we wouldn’t get the many emergencies that we would have in big cities. But he wanted to make sure you guys were prepared,” Appleby said.

Warzoha even had an impact on Appleby’s young son several years ago.

Appleby’s son, who was only 4 years old at the time, kept repeating the line, “Keep the faith, keep the faith.”

Thinking he just listened to “Keeping The Faith” by Billy Joel, Appleby asked his son why he kept saying that.

“‘Your buddy on the phone kept saying that to you,'” Appleby recalled his son saying, referring to Warzoha, who had called during a storm. It was one of Warzoha’s taglines.

“He was that guy who went above and beyond; when nobody maybe didn’t want to really get involved, he got involved. For that, we appreciate him and we miss him dearly,” Appleby said.

Former Greenwich First Selectman Peter Tesei was the one who appointed Warzoha as the town’s first emergency management director in 2007. Tesei spoke to Warzoha’s knowledge of emergency services and his many connections both in town and around the state.

That knowledge came in handy especially from 2010 to 2015, when it seemed like a new storm hit Greenwich every few weeks.

“No sooner did we recover we were back at it, but Dan knew where to go, he knew what to do, and he made the job of first selectman that much easier,” Tesei said. “It was lifesaving to me to know that Dan had his eyes and his pulse on every aspect that needed to be taken care of.”

Former state Sen. L. Scott Frantz was in the EOC with Warzoha many times during emergency events. He called the cadence and tone Warzoha used during emergency management meetings “world-class,” which prevented panic from spreading.

“If you look at his career, it’s pretty remarkable. There’s no question that due to his leadership and the ability to get the job done in a magnificent way, he saved lives and saved property as well,” Frantz said. “We owe Dan and his wonderful family a debt of gratitude for his service to this town.”

Stephen said his father was watching from above on Wednesday with another beloved member of the community who died too soon several years ago, Dave Theiss.

“I know that right now, he is smiling down on us, sitting in that great emergency management center up there in the sky, and I guarantee you he is sitting next to our dear friend former Selectman Dave Theiss dealing with some crisis or another, with a smile and a joke, ending with dad’s two famous lines, ‘Keep the faith,’ and ‘What can I tell you?'”

Afterward, family and friends went up to the Cobber North, a favorite spot for Warzoha, for food, drinks, and further reminiscing.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.