This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
05/25/2022 08:30 AMAs Branford-North Branford probate judge, Frank J. Forgione has been honored to serve the residents of both communities and privileged to provide individuals and families with compassion and guidance during what’s often a very difficult time. After 32 years as probate judge, Frank has announced he will retire when his current term ends in January, and will not seek re-election this November.
Frank, who turned 65 this year, said it was not an easy decision, but he feels the time is right to step away from his profession, which exacts a toll in its work.
“In the profession that I’m in, we’re faced with people who are going through challenging and difficult times,” says Frank. “I’m reminded of what my father said, as his time was ending—his regret was that he hadn’t retired sooner. And I feel at this point in my life, being healthy, hopefully having some good years to look forward to, I wanted to take advantage of good health in whatever time remains. So, I don’t want to repeat what my father repeated to me.”
He’s also confident that, whomever his successor, he’s leaving a probate court that’s running at “optimum capacity.” In the court office at Branford Town Hall, Frank works with a staff of three who all share his supportive approach to those seeking the assistance of the court.
“The staff is terrific,” says Frank. “They are a great group of dedicated people. They are the first contact that someone from the public has with our office, whether it’s by phone or in person. They understand that it’s important to be open, welcoming, and compassionate. It’s necessary, because when people walk through that door, it’s usually because something difficult has happened in their lives.”
Decades of Service
Prior to the state re-districting that spliced Branford and North Branford in one probate court district as of January 2011, Frank served as North Branford probate judge from 1990 to 2010.
When the two towns were combined into one district, “certainly, the workload increased dramatically,” Frank recalls. “Now, it’s a full-time job. I don’t want the work to wait and [it] has to be done properly, which means you have to read the files, do the research, hold the hearings, and make the best decisions you can, based upon all the facts. I think it’s what the position requires.”
While it’s not a political position, candidates for probate judge are nominated by political parties. Frank has run for probate judge on the Republican slate through all of his terms in office. As a testament to his work, he’s run unopposed in many of those elections, including running unopposed for the North Branford position from 1994 to 2006.
In the 2010 race for the seat as first probate judge of newly formed Branford-North Branford District 35, Frank won the four-year term by a margin of more than 2,000 votes, and has run unopposed for re-election in all successive state elections.
“I appreciate the fact that people have chosen to support me as their probate judge,” says Frank. “I’m very grateful.”
He says he announced his decision to retire now, “so that the public was aware, so that the parties were aware, so that whomever might want to seek the position would have that opportunity to do so.”
Expertise, Compassion, and Guidance
After graduating from Amherst College, Frank went on to earn his juris doctor from the UConn School of Law. Frank founded his private law practice in Branford in 1989 (closing it just recently, about 2 ½ years ago). Frank was a practicing lawyer when he decided to pursue earning a master’s degree in social work, which he received from the UConn School of Social Work.
He says his interest in social work was fostered, at least in part, by volunteering with then-Branford Counseling Center (BCC) director Patricia Andriole.
“I started volunteering at the counseling center and talking to Pat,” says Frank, who went on to intern and work for a time at BCC. “So, I was practicing law, and going to social work school, and working at the counseling center.”
When he became a probate judge, Frank effectively combined his legal background with his masters in social work.
“Certainly, the combination of both law and social work degrees have been invaluable,” says Frank. “So much of what we’re dealing with is raw emotion and heartache and hardship and difficult decision-making.”
In particular, his commitment to assisting families led to his instrumental work in helping to develop the New Haven Regional Children’s Probate Court, which started up in 2004. Frank is currently administrative judge. Frank was also honored to have been selected as the regional court’s first administrative judge, serving from 2004 to 2010. In 2006, the court received an Innovations Award from the Council of State Governments, as one of the eight most innovative state projects in the country. It has since become a model for the many courts in the state.
Frank credits the court’s creation to working with then-probate administrator Jim Lawlor and the collective guidance of all 10 probate judges in this region at that time.
“We recognized a significant need in the care of our children,” Frank says.
They developed a court model that’s not only populated by clerks who are well-trained to guide people through the application and filing processes, but also as one that retains master’s degree social workers on staff.
“The first meeting they have with the children’s court is not with a judge, but with a social worker, to assess the family situation, the dynamics, the strengths, the weaknesses, and the possibilities—the potential resolutions—before it gets to a judge at a hearing stage,” Frank explains.
“We’ve made a difference, and that’s what we wanted to do, make a difference one family at a time, one child at a time,” he adds. “It’s hard work, because sometimes there’s no good decision, but you make the best decision with the facts that you have.”
Assisting in the Community
Frank grew up in Branford, where he currently resides, and spent 25 years as a resident of North Branford. Outside of his profession, he’s also made an impact in both towns as a community leader, volunteer, and coach.
In North Branford, Frank was an organizer of the non-profit Food Pantry of North Branford, which he feels honored to have assisted founder Lynn Riordan in developing. He also served as president of the board following Riordan’s years of service as its first president.
“Lynn Riordan is an extraordinary human being,” says Frank, who thanks Riordan for seeking him out to assist with launching the program. “Before I became involved, I was not aware of how dire the food insecurity was. At least one-third of our students have food insecurity.”
While he is no longer involved with the pantry as a board member, “The current board members and officers are doing a terrific job,” says Frank. “Rita Ney is the president now, and she has taken it to the next level.”
Until just a few years ago, Frank also served on the North Branford Educational Council as its vice president, working for many years alongside president Frank Mentone, whom Frank describes as “another tremendous human being.”
“He does so much for the community of North Branford,” he says of Mentone.
Growing up in Branford, Frank played baseball from an early age, inspired by his dad, the late Sal Forgione. Frank’s dad was a long-time Branford Little League baseball coach as well as a former league commissioner. He says he still hears great things about his dad from older players Frank had looked up to as a kid.
“I see them in the community and they have very nice things to say about my dad. He was a gentle, good soul,” says Frank.
Frank is also a well-known local baseball coach. He began coaching junior varsity (JV) at Choate in 2003 with the late coach Andy Noel before joining North Branford High School’s (NBHS) head coach Bill Mitchell as an assistant coach for three seasons. Frank’s daughter, Kate, was the NBHS team’s manager and one of his nephews, Mike Forgione, competed on the team.
His nephews Mike and Tyler were also both players on the Post 83 Branford Senior Legion baseball squad, which Frank joined as one of three assistant coaches in 2012, working with head coach Rich Balzano. Frank and Balzano both retired from their Post 83 coaching positions in 2016.
Among many memorable moments for Frank is Post 83’s 2013 run in which the team won both the state and Northeast Regional championships, and went on to compete among the country’s elite eight teams in the American Legion World Series.
“What an experience,” says Frank. “Those young men were dedicated and committed. It was every day, seven days a week, for three months. They showed up, and they put their heart and soul into it, and they delivered.”
Because of his two nephews, who called him “Uncle Frank” on the field, Frank became known to his Post 83 players as “Uncle Frank.”
“They all called me Uncle Frank. It was very touching,” says Frank.
Frank’s daughter later followed in Frank’s mother’s footsteps to become a nurse. Kate currently works in the neonatal intensive care unit at Beth Israel and is also completing her APRN degree. Frank says his daughter’s chosen profession is especially touching for him as he feels he owes much of his own professional career to his late mother, Lois.
“My mother instilled the drive for education in all of us—demanded it,” says Frank. “She was an incredibly strong woman who was fiercely protective of her children.”
Grateful to Have Served
Upon winning the 2010 election as the first judge of probate for the newly created 35th Probate District, Frank succeeded retiring Branford probate judge John Donegan, who served in the Branford role for 20 years. Frank says he was honored to have the late Donegan, a great friend, swear him in to his new judgeship in January 2011.
“He was an extraordinary human being and an exemplary judge. I’m fortunate to have followed in his footsteps,” says Frank.
Now that it’s his turn to retire, Frank says he will miss the work, but is looking forward to “gaining other opportunities, whatever they might be,” he says.
“I’ve loved being a probate judge. It’s fit into my personality and what I like to do. It’s been a great professional avocation for me,” says Frank. “It’s certainly going to be a loss, but at the same time, I’m not going to regret the decision. It’s the right time for me, and I’ve had a tremendously positive run. I’m truly grateful.”