Obituary of Ralph A. DeSimone

Ralph A. “Des” DeSimone, 75, of Manchester, beloved husband for fifty years to Carol A. (Ouellette) DeSimone died Wednesday, October 19, 2022 at Hartford Hospital. Born in Manchester, he was the son of the late Joseph and Rose (Moriconi) DeSimone and had lived in town most of his life.

He was a proud US Air Force veteran and had retired from SNET as a Lineman after many years of service. Des was an avid Bocce player, even becoming champion at the Manchester Senior Center. He loved sports, especially the Cowboys and Red Sox, and animals, with a tremendous affinity to their dog Chloe and his daughter’s ‘fur babies’ Cleetis, Riddim, Prudence Rose, Autumn and Cheech. He was also very proud of his Italian heritage, but the most important and cherished love of his life was his family. He even took up getting yearly tattoos with his daughter at age 65 on their birthdays.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his children Brett DeSimone and his wife Allison of Bridgewater, MA; and Wendi Butler and her husband Steve of Willington; his grandchildren Layla and Jude DeSimone; his brother Joseph DeSimone and his wife Patricia of Coventry; and his brother-in-law Jack McWilliams. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his sister Beverly McWilliams.

Family and friends may call at the John F. Tierney Funeral Home, 219 West Center St., Manchester on Tuesday, October 25th from 4-7 pm and Wednesday morning from 10:15-11:00 am. A memorial service will be held at the funeral home on Wednesday, October 26th at 11:00 am followed by burial with military honors at Hillstown Road Veterans Cemetery, Manchester.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the VA at https://portal.ct.gov/DVA/Donations/Veterans-Donation-Overview or by mail to CT Dept. of Veterans Affairs, 287 West Street, Rocky Hill, CT 06067, Attn: T. Marzik, Community Outreach.  For online condolences please visit www.tierneyfuneralhome.com.