Stewart Frederick Lyons

Stewart Frederick Lyons, 76, passed away peacefully at home in Guilford, Connecticut on January 30,

2023, with family at his side, following a long illness from Parkinson’s disease.

Stew was born in Hartford on November 16, 1946 to Celeste (Libbey) and

Fred Lyons. The second of five children, he grew up in the city’s Behind the Rocks neighborhood. He studied mechanical engineering at Hartford State Technical College, finished his undergraduate degree at the University of New Haven, and began working for the United Illuminating Company upon his graduation in 1969. The draft compelled a two-year detour to Fort Rucker in Alabama, where Stew worked on aviation safety for the Army, and made several lifelong friends. He returned to what became a 43-year career with the power company, working at New Haven Harbor Station, Bridgeport Harbor Station, and the central office; he also earned an MBA along the way.

Stew met his wife Kaarina (Korkala), of Moosup, Connecticut, when friends set them up for a blind date in 1968; they married in 1972, and settled in Cheshire.

They welcomed a son, Teague, in 1980, and another son, Davin, in 1983. In 1987, the family moved to North Guilford, where Stew had spent a year building a new home. The house’s Finnish wood furnace reflected his longstanding interest in Kaarina’s heritage. His other enduring interests included bicycling, tennis, woodworking, and anything his sons were up to. Stew brought his warm smile and desire to see the best in others to years of volunteering with Boy Scout Troop

474 and the North Guilford Congregational Church.

He is survived by Kaarina, Teague (Ginger), Davin, his four siblings—Linwood (Elaine), Richard (Elizabeth), Bradford (Inna), and Jan Walker (Robert)—and a host of nephews, nieces, and cousins who love him dearly. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 25, at the North Guilford Congregational Church, 159 Ledge Hill Road, Guilford, CT 06437.