Life Legacy On March 5th, 2016, one of the few renaissance men left, Herbert Roth, Jr., died at age 87. He was a resident of Stamford for 12 years and was formerly a longtime resident of Sherborn, Mass. Born in South Bend, IN on October 7, 1928, he was the son of the late Vita Augustynowicz and Gilbert Shoemaker. Both were well known aviators , in fact his mother set the world’s record for a parachute jump in 1931. He went to Manlius Academy in upstate New York and then attended West Point from which he graduated in 1951. While there he was on the Track team and famously avoided becoming the first streaker when the elastic of his shorts broke while running the 4x4 at Madison Square Garden. He managed to finish without dropping the baton or his shorts! He resigned his commission in 1956 and went to work at Bell Labs in the think tank. He simultaneously attended Newark College of Engineering and received a Masters of Engineering and taught classes in business management while there. Herb went on to achieve a highly successful business career and was a business leader in the Boston area. He was the CEO of a number of High Tech companies including Annelex corporation, and LFE Corp, while also serving on the Boards of Boston Edison, Phoenix Mutual Life,Tech ops Mark IV, Landauer, Sevcon, Computervision, Mohawk Data Sciences and Shreve Crump and Low. He was Bay State Businessman of the year in 1970 and was credited for saving high tech manufacturing in the state. Herb also served as President of the Boston Chamber of Commerce and headed the Massachusetts United Way. His belief that education is the only avenue to a better life led him to serve on Mayor White’s council for Boston schools. The Mayor asked him to analyze the school system which he did, uncovering warts and all, much to the chagrin of the Mayor. He had not counted on Herb’s tell it like it is approach. Herb also served on the Boston University board of visitors and headed the search committee that brought John Silber there. Herb’s interest in the Arts led him to work with opera conductor Sarah Caldwell in helping her find a business partner to restore the Boston Opera House to its glory. It took a year, but against all odds, and after many lunches with her, he was able to find her a backer. One of his passions was history and he read every autobiography of every American president. He believed you needed to know and understand the past in order to go forward. A lifelong news junkie, Herb would have loved all the mayhem of this year’s politics. His other passion was fly fishing which he pursued with abandon at Horse Island Camp on the Grande Cascapedia River in Quebec. He gave the Camp to his wife as an anniversary present. Most of all, he loved to laugh, especially at himself. His greatest love was his wife of 64 years, Dolores Maloney Roth, followed by his love for his great danes, orchids, Cuban cigars, gardening, his wine cellar, his daughters, and fly fishing… though not necessarily in that order. He is survived by his beloved wife and fishing partner, Dolores, and his daughters Christine Roth of Cave Creek, Az., and Diane Lloyde Roth of New Canaan, CT. He is predeceased by his daughter Carla Roth Morrison and son- in- law Pedro Gil Morrison of Palm Beach Fl. Special thanks to the caregivers who took care of him: Otis,Benjamin, Andrew ,and Bevan. Without these men, he could not have had the quality of life he deserved. A Memorial Mass will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, March 14th at St. Aloysius Church, Cherry Street, New Canaan. Services have been entrusted to Hoyt Funeral Home, 199 Main St., New Canaan CT 06840. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Sisters of The Presentation , New Windsor at sistersofthepresentation.org or The West Point Association of Graduates- Class of 1951, 698 Mills Rd., West Point, NY 10996 For online condolences and directions, please visit www.hoytfuneralhome.com