Edwin C. DeGroat OBITUARY
Edwin C. DeGroat OBITUARY
Edwin Carl DeGroat, 81, of Farmington, CT, passed away peacefully at John Dempsey Hospital University of Connecticut Medical Center on Saturday, December 14, 2024, from complications of cancer. Born in Teaneck, NJ, on June 3, 1943, and raised in Newton, MA, and Cranston, RI, Ed was the son of the late Edwin W. and Elizabeth (Blaschke) DeGroat. He was predeceased by his son, David, and grandson, Fynn DeGroat.
Ed attended the Hartt School of Music, where he received degrees in Trumpet Performance and Music Education. He also earned an M.M.Ed. from the University of Connecticut and a Ph.D. from New York University. Beginning his professional career in 1965, Ed played the trumpet professionally and taught and conducted musical groups for nearly 60 years in the Hartford area and, briefly, in suburban D.C.
Among his many contributions to the West Hartford Public School System, Ed was proudest of the string ensemble, I Giovani Solisti (The Young Soloists), which he founded and inaugurated in 1983 and is still a prominent aspect of the WHPS Music Program. Its auditioned membership, who attended either Hall or Conard High Schools, was small enough to enable performers to solo during performances and large enough to perform limitless selections of Baroque on up to contemporary music. Performances made throughout Connecticut, during international travel, and with well-known soloists were legendary, and some students went on to have distinguished professional music careers. All remembered the life-changing international travels to England and, especially, to Ireland.
After Ed retired from WHPS in 2003, he continued to impact the arts community. Between 2005 and 2011, he was Music Director of the Simsbury Light Opera Company (SLOCO), for performances of Gilbert and Sullivan and Viennese operettas. Between 2010 and 2016 he co-directed six Broadway musicals for the West Hartford Community Theater.
Ed was an accomplished photographer, who in 2019 had the privilege of being assigned by the Estonian Tourist Board to join the photographers’ pool for the 150th anniversary of the Estonian National Song Festival (Laulupidu) and its younger National Dance Festival in the capital city, Tallinn.
Of prodigious energy, Ed renovated houses, played tennis, ran marathons, and raised money for cancer by biking in Yale’s Closer to Free Ride.
Ed was devoted to his family, which stretched from Germany – to where he traveled annually – to California. He is survived by his wife, Jean Guthrie; his daughter and son-in-law, Lisa and Eric Sandstrom and grandsons Benjamin and Connor Sandstrom; his daughter-in-law, Prisca DeGroat and grandsons Bela and Jasper DeGroat; his stepson and stepdaughter-in-law, Brian and Tara Guthrie and grandchildren Eleanor and Julian Guthrie; his stepdaughter, Kathryn Guthrie; and several cousins, including Nancy Anderson and her children, Leslie Anderson and Chrissy Romeo, and their families.
A Memorial Service will be held in West Hartford in early 2025, details pending.
If you would like to pay tribute to Ed’s life, the family encourages donations to Gifts of Music, West Hartford, which offers support and access to promising young musicians for private instruction. Donations may be made online at https://giftsofmusic.us/donate.php. Online condolences may be made at www.SheehanHilbornBreen.com
