David Peter Rissanen, 65, passed suddenly but peacefully into eternal life late Monday night, February 22, 2010 at his home in Ledyard, CT.
Born in Fitchburg, MA, to Laimi (Haapala) and Waite A. Rissanen, he attended Fitchburg High, where he excelled in both classes and athletics. Dave was an outside shooting guard on the “Iron 5”, Fitchburg High School’s 1962 basketball team, helping to bring them to the Western Massachusetts finals! It was written in the Worcester Telegram & Gazette that “Rissanen had a sneaky inside game which allowed him to score in double figures.”
He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from Clark University in Worcester and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of New Haven.
He took great pride in his work as an engineer most recently for Alion Science & Technology in Mystic, CT. Dave’s passion for life, love of sports, and generosity of spirit extended to every person he met as well as to animals. As a result, many fortunate dogs and cats were welcomed into his heart and home over the years.
He will be greatly missed by his beloved wife Sue Rissanen; step-children Kristofor Wiese, Cynthia (Paul) Suedkamp, Tanya (Mike) Robillard; sister, Diane (Charlie) Price, 4 aunts, 2 cousins, nephews and nieces, step-grandchildren Megan and Joshua Suedkamp, and many close lifelong friends and family members.
He was predeceased by his first wife, Kathleen Daly Rissanen, his parents, and a brother, Dennis.
A memorial Service will be held at The Dinoto Funeral Home, 17 Pearl Street, historic downtown Mystic on Saturday at 10am.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the CT Humane Society (www.cthumane.org) 701 Russell Road, Newington, CT 06111 or Stand up For Animals (www.standupforanimals.org), P.O. Box 1706, Westerly RI 02891.
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