By Peter Tesei, former First Selectman
It is with great sadness that I learned of the passing of former First Selectman Rebecca S. Breed. Since 1983 I had the personal pleasure of knowing Rebecca as a public servant, champion of children, and mentor. Rebecca played an instrumental part in nurturing my interest in public service when she spent 2 hours with me as a 14- year old junior high student assigned to represent her in a government class election debate. She retained an interest in my pursuits and always offered encouragement and enthusiasm to take the next step.
This extraordinary experience in the fall of 1983 in the midst of her re-election campaign provided an excellent outcome for my government class grade and subsequently decades later when I had the opportunity to serve in Greenwich town government culminating in being elected First Selectman in 2007. A mentor is defined as “a trusted counselor or guide” who provides information about his or her own career path. Seeing Rebecca’s post government career evolve, becoming an attorney and child advocate as well as volunteer and philanthropist for the Greenwich Boys and Girls Club reflects her deep and abiding commitment to help young people to learn, grow and succeed. It is an enduring legacy when you imagine the countless boys and girls she tutored and enriched at “the Club”. In 2019 she was recognized for this extraordinary service with the GBGC Youth Champion Award. In true Rebecca fashion she graciously accepted the award and turned the focus to the future, committing $1 million over 10 years to the GBGC. Her legacy and imprint on the lives of young people will continue to be felt for decades.
Reflecting on this remarkable life I admired how gracious Rebecca remained in the face adversity, dealing with the Mianus River Bridge Collapse in June of 1983. She worked tirelessly with local, state and Federal officials to mitigate the impact on Greenwich residents but despite these efforts those impacted heaped their scorn on her. The State government held the control over the decision making but looking back on news articles at the time, Rebecca didn’t try and assign blame or castigate she openly said they did their best to address an immediate and dire situation to get traffic flowing safely across the Mianus River. She was genuine, honest and strong in her approach to governing. Politics and government can use more people like her who will do their best and make the tough calls despite the political consequences.
