Ferraro earned it!
Charles Ferraro, five-term Republican representative of the 117th Assembly District sent a minor tremor through the political class in the city, announcing he will not seek a sixth term in the seat. That creates a lacuna in the city’s delegation that will be hard to fill.
The 71-year-old lawmaker has decided he has done his duty to his constituents and will now leave the door open to another. Not a lifetime politician, Ferraro made a mark as a martial arts teacher and expert. His West Haven Academy of Karate made his name well known before he dipped his foot into the political sea. And that school has continued the excellence he set forth early in his career by recently having several students win world titles in their particular fields of expertise.
For five terms, Ferraro has exemplified the oft espoused but little practiced idea of collegiality and “working across the aisle” between majority and minority party members. Indeed, Connecticut being the “Blue State” bastion many times disregards the concerns of the minority and steamrolls into policies and projects that have, quite frankly, damaged the state over the decades.
A fiscal conservative, the representative was fearless in his cautionary rhetoric to lawmakers, speaking as a businessman trying to do business in the state. Many times, the longtime chieftains of the Assembly and the State Senate forget the rules they make affect more than protected classes they try to coddle and make more work for small mom-and-pop shops. His ability to convey the concerns of small businesses, sometimes showing the unintended consequences of legislative acts we believe helped quell some of the excesses supported by certain groups within the legislature.
Ferraro, too, won his seat the old-fashioned way: he worked for it. Trekking door-t0-door every two years in a district that encompasses three towns, he secured the trust and admiration of his constituents. He forgot never for whom he was working, and for whom he owed loyalty and a voice.
He is a consummate Westie as well. While he represented a tri-town area, he never forgot his roots and the lessons learned in this city. Collaborating with members of the opposition over the years, he was able to assist the city in times of need, crafting legislation that helped the municipality in many ways.
But more than that, Ferraro exemplifies the true idea of the Founders of the nation to have gentlemen legislators, who serve the public for a time, and then return to their chosen profession. He never intended to be a career politician, and the careerists would do well to take a page from the retiring assemblyman and get a real job. It allows for perspective and mature reflection.
Charles Ferraro has done well in his tenure, and deserves the best wishes and acclaim extended by residents. All too often, kind words are put off until one reads a person’s name in an obituary. At that time, the words sound shallow and vapid. Ferraro deserves more for the work he has done.
He represents the best of what comes out of West Haven. We wish him many happy years in his retirement with his family and friends. He has earned it.