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04/06/2016 08:30 AMFor nearly three decades, Bob Petrucelli has worked for the Town of East Haven with the majority of his time focusing on youth services. Two years ago, Bob’s duties expanded to include social services, as well.
“What’s really nice and unique about my position now is dealing with kids, families, and senior citizens,” says Bob, who has his master’s in public administration from the University of New Haven. “It gives you a chance to work with a nice range of people in community.”
While Bob, who has always enjoyed working with people, enjoys the diversity of his new position, he admits merging social services into his job wasn’t easy. Having the support of his staff and the town helped to ease the transition.
“I was a wonderful assistant in Jessica Santos and the full support of Mayor [Joseph] Maturo and his administration, as well as many community partners, so it’s a nice team effort,” says Bob. “It was a real challenge to learn the new systems for the seniors and the new programs, but it was also very exciting.”
As the director of Social Services, Bob heads up several programs that assist residents. The Connecticut Rental Rebate Program offers seniors 65 and older, and the fully disabled, a one-time rebate on their rent. Bob’s office receives about 570 applications a year and awards about $280,000 in assistance.
The Connecticut Energy Assistance Program is an income-based program that provides financial assistance to town residents to offset the cost of their primary heating source. The program draws about 550 applications a year, awarding about $400,000 in assistance.
“It’s nice to get good hard-working people some money back,” says Bob.
With Youth Services, Bob also works on several programs to benefit teens in East Haven. One is the Juvenile Review Board that’s run in conjunction the East Haven Police Department, members of the clergy, and members of the school system. The goal of the board is to prevent first-time youth offenders from going into the juvenile system by offering counseling, community service opportunities, and more.
“It’s a nice representative board that really cares about the kids,” says Bob, who lives in West Haven with his wife. “We’ve had some great success with it.”
Youth Services also runs a Middle School Leadership Program and operates the Teen Center, which is held on Friday nights at the old high school and is aimed at middle school students. Activities include sports tournaments, arts and crafts, food, and more entertainment.
“We just wanted to create a safe, comfortable environment for kids to spend a couple hours on a Friday night,” says Bob. “We are looking forward to the new [proposed] plans for the high school, which includes a new space for the teen center. We are really excited about the future.”
Bob noted that the Youth Service Commission, which includes five adults and four teens, will offer feedback on the new space as the plans move forward.
About 10 years ago, the committee of the Fall Festival, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary, approached Bob about creating a Teen Corner for the festival. Bob leapt at the opportunity and has seen the Teen Corner grow in popularity. It’s now held on Friday and Saturday of the festival weekend.
“They wanted to make teens more of a part of the festival since they are such a big part of our community,” says Bob. “Now we have a hamster ball, a DJ, and more. We started out small, but now it’s an integral part of the festival that has grown and grown.”
Having worked in East Haven for nearly three decades, Bob has had the opportunity to meet many members of the community. He has seen many teens he has worked with, after they’ve grown up.
“Being here for this length of time, the kids you worked with as teens are now adults,” says Bob, who is also an avid golfer and big fan of the Baltimore Orioles. “I’ll see them out and touching base with young adults now [whom] you had positive influence with when they were younger is truly special.”
In addition to those he has helped he has formed relationships with people through working with the schools, the library, and community groups. He has become involved in ETV and is the chair of the board.
“Community linkages have always been important to me,” says Bob. “I am fortunate to be part of the East Haven community. There are a lot of wonderful people that you’re able to interact with on a regular basis in a variety of way. It makes you feel good that you’re able to help people and play a small role in doing something positive with them.”