Ferdinand Bedini, 89, active in community

Ferdinand B. Bedini of High Ridge, a retired contractor who spent much of his life in community service, died Tuesday, July 16, at Laurel Ridge after a long illness. He was 89 years old and had lived almost all of his life in Ridgefield.
Once called a “volunteer extraordinaire,” Mr. Bedini served with more than a dozen community organizations, many of which honored him with awards in recent years.
A native of Monterado, Italy, Mr. Bedini was born on Jan. 19, 1913, a son of Vincent and Cesira Stefanelli Bedini. When he was three months old, he was brought over to Ridgefield, and grew up on North Salem Road. He graduated from Ridgefield High School in 1931 and from Connecticut State Trade School four years later.
During World War II, Mr. Bedini headed an Army Air Force crew that maintained and serviced the gunsights on B-17 and B-24 bombers.
After graduating from trade school, with a specialty in architectural drawing, Mr. Bedini went to work for his father’s contracting firm, taking over the business in 1947. Over the years he designed and built many houses and additions in Ridgefield and the area.
Mr. Bedini had been active in many Ridgefield organizations. In 1996, the Ridgefield Old Timers Association gave him its Civic Award. The same year, he was named grand marshal of the Memorial Day Parade. Parade organizer Rene Franks said at the time, “He’s been a guy looked up to for what he’s done not only for his country, but also for the town.”
A member of the Kiwanis Club since 1968, he was honored by the club with at least three service awards and was named Kiwanian of the Year in 1989.
For more than 40 years he was both a donor and a volunteer at Red Cross Bloomobiles here.
He served St. Mary’s Church through the Knights of Columbus for more than 60 years. He was a third and fourth degree knight, had been a deputy grand knight and was chancellor for more than 40 years. In 2000, the Knights of Columbus honored him as the Knight of the Century.
Over the years Mr. Bedini had been a member of the 4-H Garden Club, the Ridgefield Boys Band, the board of the Ridgefield Community Center, American Legion, Ridgefield Men’s Club, Italian-American Club, Boy Scouts, and the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). He served on the Board of Advisers of the Ridgefield Branch of the Connecticut National Bank for 22 years.
A boater, Mr. Bedini was active in the United States Power Squadron chapter at Lake Candlewood as a boating safety instructor.
In the 1990s, he became one of the area’s busiest chair caners, and had done hundreds of chairs between 1993 and 2000.
He and his wife, the former Angela Antonetti, marked their 50th wedding anniversary in 1996. Mrs. Bedini died a year later.
“He was a unique dad,” said his daughter, Marianne Vella. “He told great stories and he loved being around people.”
“He was also a very proud person,” she added. “We were taught as kids to be proud of what you have, to make the best use of what you have.”
His younger brother, historian Silvio Bedini, said, “He was always someone to look up to. He was also the most honest man I’ve ever known — I’ve never known him to tell a lie.”
Mr. Bedini’s survivors include a son, Vincent P. Bedini of Ridgefield; a daughter, Marianne Vella and her husband John of Norwalk; and his brother: Silvio A. Bedini of Washington, D.C. A son, Arthur Bedini, died in 1959.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Saturday at 10:30 a.m. in St. Mary’s Church. Burial will be in St. Mary’s Cemetery.
Friends may call at the Kane Funeral Home on Friday from 5 to 8.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, William Black Medical Building, Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, 710 West 168th Street New York, NY 10032-9982.