Dennis Ray Schultz

Dennis Ray Schultz, 72, died on July 18, 2024. He was born in Taft, CA on February 14, 1952 and spent his childhood in Morton Grove, IL. Dennis graduated from Notre Dame College Preparatory High School in 1970 before heading to Utica College.

In addition to a Public Relations degree Dennis also picked up his wife of 44 years, Jo Mycoff, at Utica. Together they relocated to Connecticut in 1981 where Dennis took a job as the Business Manager for the New Britain Red Sox. While his love of sports ran deep, not as deep as the love he had for the other loves of his life- his daughter, Sarah, and son, Andrew. So he left the Red Sox and took a job with the Connecticut Department of Labor to have more family time. Dennis didn’t leave sports far behind though. He spent countless weekends on the Park Road diamond or on the sideline of a basketball court. He believed in bounce passes, bananas before games, and that hard work was rewarded.

Dennis was the son of Arthur and Kathryn Schultz and brother to Richard Kirkland. He is also survived by his aforementioned wife, Jo; daughter Sarah and her husband Michael McCoy, of Hartford, CT; son Andrew and his partner Nicole Tarquinio, of Glastonbury; and five granddaughters, Charlotte, Annabelle, Camryn, Ripley, and Lina. He is pre-deceased by grandson, Henry McCoy. Dennis was also loved by his extended family including Carol Mycoff; Brett Mentuck and her husband Jeff, and their children Alexandra and Maxwell; as well as numerous cousins including Bonnie Siegel and her husband Gary and Kathy Nordling.

After retiring from his coaching duties, Dennis found a community with the Marlborough Lions and, later, through golf. He loved his golfing buddies Steve and Carlos and frequently told them as much. Dennis was grateful to share regular lunches with his neighbors Tony and Gar and his best friend from college, Jim Andisio. He had relentless optimism that this was going to be the Chicago Bears’ year and enjoyed many hours dissecting the play of the UConn Huskies with his kids. 

Dennis was a natural encourager and cheerleader. He loved a good pep talk. This carried through to his last years where some of his best memories were being Pa to granddaughters who were quick with hugs and looked forward to sharing their lives with him. 

A service honoring Dennis’ life will be held at St. John Fisher Church in Marlborough, CT on August 23, 2024 at 3pm with a reception to follow.