Last Updated on November 16, 2014 by Editor
Dominick Timpano has been a leader for much of his adult life. He has had several high-ranking positions in firefighters’ unions and the state, has been appointed by governors to major posts and even has been an important cog in his parish life. Today, he gets a lot of satisfaction serving others.
You were confirmed and married at Mount Carmel but you were a communicant of Blessed Sacrament Church. How did that happen?
As a boy my family lived on Clementian Street, and I attended Sunday School at Blessed Sacrament. I made First Communion there. I was confirmed and married at Mount Carmel, but was living within walking distance of Blessed Sacrament. All of my five sons graduated from Blessed Sacrament School. During those years, my wife and I and became active in the parish. My wife was president of the Mothers Club and Rosary Altar Society. We both worked at the very first festival that Blessed Sacrament ever held. My wife and I served on the Parish Council. Eventually, I was named as a trustee of the parish.
What are your earliest memories of Mount Carmel?
I have vivid memories of how everyone sang and the processions with the statues of the saints through the neighborhood. People pinned dollar bills to the sashes at a time when they didn’t have the money. It was all very moving.
What are your favorite memories of Blessed Sacrament?
I can still smell the first pizza fritta at the first festival. I remember the first spaghetti dinner. Imagine everyone bringing a quart of sauce and pouring it all into milk cans. Likewise with all different meatballs! I made many lifelong friendships with parishioners, sisters and priests.
You were on the parish council during the time Blessed Sacrament was closing and merging with Mount Carmel. How difficult was that for you and the parishioners?
Merging was very difficult. I had a long history at Blessed Sacrament, but I also had one foot in each parish. Blessed Sacrament parishioners were encouraging me to fight to the end. Relatives from Mount Carmel were telling me to come home. Eventually, we all realized that this is part of the process of moving forward.
What are your thoughts about returning to this community?
We were welcomed with open arms. Old friends embraced us. We share our faith.
Who instilled faith into you as a child and why do you feel so strongly?
I saw the faith of my father, my mother and last but not least by sister Anne, who everyone knew at Mount Carmel. My father was a sexton at Mount Carmel. I would pick him up after work. If I didn’t pick him up he would walk home.
What did you enjoy most about being in leadership positions?
The greatest pleasure in any of my leadership roles was to be able to help someone when they had a problem.
In your spare time you enjoy golfing. What has the game taught you?
Golf has taught me humility.
Dominick A. Timpano
Age: 83.
Family: Wife Kathleen (Bifano); special sister-in-law Marie Bifano; sons and daughters-in-law Gabriel and Denise, Joseph, Dominick II, Michael and Anne, Robert and Mary Jo; grandchildren Kathleen, Madeline and her husband Gregory Jones, Dominick III, Edmund, William, Michael Abbey; great grandson Blake.
Education: Thomas R. Proctor Class of 1947; labor management studies at Cornell University, Syracuse University, University of Wisconsin, Rutgers University.
Former occupations: Served in Korea with the U.S. Army, city of Utica firefighter, president Local Union 32; executive vice president, secretary/treasurer, registered lobbyist for New York State Professional Firefighters Association; appointed by three state comptrollers to police and fire state Advisory Council for the state Retirement System; appointed by Gov. Mario Cuomo to the state Commission for Codes and Personnel; vice chairman Civil Service Review Board for Firefighters; administrator for Health and Welfare for Insurance and Benefits.
What you like to do in your spare time: Golf, reading, travel.
Favorite book: Biography of Vince Lombardi.
Favorite movie: “The Long Gray Line.”
Favorite TV show: Anything from the History Channel.