CCSAR Will Forever Miss One of its Founding Members, Joanne Pigott.
September 21, 2013
In memory of our friend and teammate, Joanne Pigott:
Joanne was a charter member of Connecticut Canine Search and Rescue and served until her death at 78.
She was the CCSAR member with far more finds than anyone else in the organization. There came a point where her teammates would accuse her of hoarding the subjects! In her 19 years of service, she participated in over 100 searches.
Professionally, Joanne was a teacher. She taught for many years at Mooreland Hill School, a small private middle school in central Connecticut. She had a reputation as a stickler for the proper use of the English language. Her canine partners were regular fixtures in her classroom and all of her students knew about her involvement with search and rescue.
Few people know that Joanne was a survivor of the Great Hartford Circus Fire of 1944. As a nine year old she, her mother and younger sister were watching the show when the fire broke out and pandemonium ensued. A gentleman stranger walked over and grabbed her mother and the kids, walked them over to a sidewall of the tent, pulled out a pocketknife and sliced a hole in the canvas wall for them to escape.
Joanne knew a remarkable number of people from many walks of life and was well known in SAR circles. She always took particular interest in new members and helped them with training their first dog.
When not pursuing her interests in search and rescue and her dogs, Joanne was a devout Red Sox fan.
Joanne leaves two daughters, Patsy and Martha, two grandchildren and her K9 partner Ricky. She was predeceased by her first partner, K9 Robin.
There will be a memorial service on Saturday, September 28 at 2:30 pm at Mooreland Hill School.