Senior Moments: Robert “Bobby” DiBella marks 60 years with the townEmergency Management Director is longest-serving town employee
- Peter Marteka
- Aug 1
- 6 min read
By Peter Marteka
Editor
During the theme song to the old television series “Cheers,” the singer belts out the lyrics of the popular Boston bar: “Sometimes you wanna go...Where everybody knows your name...And they're always glad you came.”
Change the location to Glastonbury and that person everybody knows the name of is Robert “Bobby” DiBella. As the town’s director of Emergency Management, DiBella recently celebrated his 60th year in employment, making him the longest-serving town employee in Glastonbury’s history. Officials noted over that time he has “played a vital role in emergency preparedness, public safety and emergency communications, helping keep residents informed and protected during times of crisis.”
At a recent town council meeting, Councilman Kurt Cavanaugh read a proclamation honoring the 87-year-old DiBella:
“Whereas, Robert "Bobby" DiBella has dedicated 60 years of distinguished service to the town of Glastonbury, becoming the longest-serving employee in the town's history; and Whereas, Bobby began his service to the town in 1965 and has devoted his career to strengthening emergency preparedness, public safety, and emergency communications for the benefit of residents; and whereas, as Emergency Management Director, Bobby has led the development and modernization of the town's emergency communications systems, warning sirens, emergency alert infrastructure, and public information resources, helping ensure residents remain informed and protected during times of crisis;
Whereas, Bobby has worked closely with local, state, and federal agencies, first responders, businesses, and community organizations to coordinate emergency planning, preparedness, and response efforts and has consistently provided steadfast leadership during severe weather events, power outages, and other emergencies affecting the community; and whereas, for generations of residents, Bobby has been a trusted and familiar voice during emergencies through the town's emergency radio station, PIl600 (1570 am), providing timely information, reassurance, and guidance when it was needed most;
And whereas, Bobby has long been an active and familiar presence in the Glastonbury community through his participation in town programs and events, including serving as a judge for Parks and Recreation Department activities such as the Pooch Pageant, Pumpkin Decorating Contest, and Fishing Derby.
Whereas, in addition to his service as Emergency Management Director, Bobby has served as a part-time police officer and faithfully directed traffic at the First Church of Christ in Glastonbury for more than four decades, never missing a Sunday and exemplifying an extraordinary commitment to serving others;
And whereas, Bobby's innovation, professionalism, institutional knowledge, and unwavering dedication have left a lasting impact on the town and have helped make Glastonbury a safer and better-prepared community.
Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the Glastonbury Town Council, on behalf of the citizens of Glastonbury, hereby expresses its sincerest thanks and appreciation to Robert “Bobby” DiBella for his remarkable 60 years of dedicated service to the town of Glastonbury, congratulates him on this preparedness, and well-being of the community unprecedented milestone, and extends its gratitude for his countless contributions.”
The affable DiBella said it “seems like yesterday when I started.”
“It’s a great town in which to serve,” he said. “The people of our town – our customers- all of them are our customers. We do serve our people and they’re deserving of quality. I always try and give them quality. It’s a great honor to do this. I’m very fortunate the Lord’s been good to me and everyone else.”
DiBella has plenty of stories to share over those years of service. He recently recalled the story of when he purchased the first handheld radio in the state in the 1960s. Soon after there was a report of a motorcycle gang coming to town on a Friday night. The police showed up in force to meet them.
“They were gonna take over Glastonbury,” he recalled. “So, when we stood in front of all these cops, I was one of them. And the motorcyclists there and were like, ‘What is this device?’ They looked at that. They'd never seen anything like it. Uh-huh. ‘Let's go. Let’s get out of here. These people are very sophisticated.’ They drove off just because of that radio. Right. I can’t forget that.”
During a snowstorm a woman called the emergency operations line.
“She said, ‘I just got home from the hospital with a new baby. My husband's in the military. I'm all alone here. I know no one. And there's no power.’ I said, ‘Look, you can't go on like this. This might be a few days.’
DiBella put plans in motion to get to the home and rescue the new mom and baby and take her to a shelter.
“I called back about six hours later, I said, ‘Are you about ready?’ She said, ‘My father-in-law was coming to fetch me and take me to Middletown.’ Oh, well. You always try to be the hero in this job and do the right thing,” he said.
Another story DiBella spun was during a major flood along the Connecticut River on Tryon Street and into Portland. Residents were trapped and the water was rising. He called in the town’s payloader operators.
“I said, ‘Paul, I need help.’ He said, ‘Bobby, what's the matter?’ I said, ‘I need you on the payload. Go down into the Portland area of Tryon Street and rescue people with the machine.’ He said, ‘I'll do it.’ He did it. Saved lives. Wow, the water was coming up right from there, almost in their floors. Well, he did it. We saved lives.”
Then there was the Halloween nor’easter in 2011 also known as “Snowtober” that knocked out power for days in town. DiBella was manning the center.
“We're sitting looking out the window. It's a beautiful day. It was a warm day. But no power. The phone rang. ‘Are you folks gonna cancel Halloween?’ Halloween? Put the phone down. How do you cancel Halloween? That was a wild storm.”
DiBella recalled a day when the snow was measured in feet and a condo complex on New London Turnpike was out of power and the power cables that needed repairs went underground.
“People there are totally cold. I called the power people and said, ‘You can't do this. I blast them. Like, always polite though. The next day, I was told, ‘You're not gonna believe this, Bobby. There are six trucks here!’”
“I don’t think there are words that can truly express that level of service that you’ve given to this town,” said town council chairman Corey Turner. “It’s an amazing feat to work in one place for 60 years. That’s twice as long as most people work in their entire lives.”
Town council member Larry Niland, who worked in the communications field in West Hartford said any town he worked in, everybody knew DiBella.
“Everybody knew who you were and everybody had great respect for you. You can’t go to an event in Glastonbury and not have Bobby be there. You show up. You are there. You are a giant piece of this community and so for all your 60 years, thank you very much,” he said.
Council vice-chairman Jennifer Wang said DiBella’s “constant presence and support in this town is truly an inspiration.”
“I think that you bring this positive energy that brings out the best in everyone,” she said. “When you are around at an event, I think that your energy will carry far beyond even, you know...beyond this piece of paper. I think you are a terrific role model for public service.”
“Not only has he been involved in our programs,” added recreation commission chairman John Langmaid, “it doesn’t go unnoticed that the foundations of any public recreation program is public safety and his contributions make all our programs possible.”
Retirement plans in the near future for DiBella?
“With the help of the Lord, we will keep going for a while and serve the people of the town of Glastonbury,” he said. GL