By Bella Caggiano

John Carroll will forever be an icon in Norwood history. For those new to the town, Carroll served as Town Manager for 39 years and retired at the age of 89. Although a resident of Dedham and Milton, Carroll’s love and devotion to the Town of Norwood was evident, not only through his long tenure, but also his principle to make this town the best it could be.

His formal obituary in sidebar gives a detailed account of Carroll’s municipal and state work history and his ethical influence in every post he held. Here in Norwood, the Norwood DPW administration building was honored in his name and there is even a whimsical lawn display in front of Town Hall with his name for all to see and remember.

Throughout his lengthy tenor, Carroll interacted with many town employees as well as residents and each could share countless memories of this hard working and dedicated employee.

“John Carroll was an extremely warm and compassionate human being as well as a great administrator,” Norwood Board of Selectman Chairman William J. Plasko said.  “John worked tirelessly to provide the best services possible to the residents of Norwood. He worked nights and weekends to improve the town’s social and cultural life. For example, he was a leader and heavily involved in the Concerts on the Common committee. His contributions to Norwood are truly unmatched.”

“He told me the two things he enjoyed most about his job were working with people and ‘the grind,’” Norwood Police Chief William Brooks said. “He liked coming to work and working to solve problems, getting things done, or what he called ‘the grind.’”

As hard as he worked, however, John never shied from showing his personal side to anyone.

“I enjoyed my visits to his [Carroll]’s] office,” Chief Brooks said. “That’s how he liked to do business, face to face. We’d get the business out of the way and then he’d want to talk about the latest true crime show he’d seen, or he’d tell an old baseball story. He remembered the names of the players on his team at Hyde Park High, he was amazing!

“John also loved to tell stories, and almost no one he met left an encounter with him without hearing at least one of his stories,” Plasko said. “He also loved baseball and was a master at baseball trivia.”

What Norwood residents may not know about Carroll, is that he was writing a book.

At lunch he would keep me up to date on his progress with the book he was writing,” Chief Brooks said. “He explained that he would write the book long-hand, and I believe it was one of his daughters who would type it for him. He talked about struggling with how to end it. The book, “What did Ted Have?” features a photo of Ted Williams on the cover - John was a huge Ted William fan.  But the book really isn’t about Ted Williams or the Red Sox. The title comes from an instant in John’s past as a kid that struck him later in life. He and his father were walking near Fenway Park and they saw a stranger approaching - someone they didn’t know and would never see again.  And John’s father asked as he passed ‘what did Ted have?’ and the man answered without breaking stride telling John’s dad what Ted Williams had done at bat that day, ‘he went 2 for 3,’ or some such. That moment stuck with John, that two men could exchange remarks and each knew exactly what the other meant. That the mere mention of Ted’s first name left no question what the other man was referring to. That’s where the title came from.”

Running a town, writing a book, it is no wonder Carroll had any free time at all. Especially with his large family. Holidays were an especially busy time, here in Norwood and at home!

“Everyone knows that John and his wife Penny had a huge family, I think 18 children and over 40 grandchildren,” Chief Brooks recalled. “One year around Christmas, he proudly showed me his Christmas list, which was a folded piece of paper from a yellow legal pad and it listed all his children and grandchildren. He told me that he was doing all the shopping, then almost apologized that his daughters were all getting something similar, as were groups of grandchildren. Then he folded the paper back up and stuck it in his shirt pocket, which you could see through the white fabric. John always wore white shirts with button-down collars with the sleeves rolled up and a tie - always.”

Thirty-nine years in one job. Carroll must have been doing something right. While he obviously loved the Town of Norwood, he was ready to turn over the torch should he be asked. But this town didn’t let him go too easily!

“He once talked to me about his age and his tenure in Norwood,” Chief Brooks said. “He said that when he turned 75 he almost expected someone from the board of selectmen to hint that maybe he should think about retiring. He chuckled when he said, ‘but no one said anything, so I just kept coming in.’  And he was even more surprised when he turned 80 and the same thing happened, and then when he turned 85. He loved his job and was thrilled that no one had asked him to move along.”

One last Carroll tidbit to share.

“And finally, John’s nickname as a child,” Chief Brooks shared. “Noggie. There’s some John Carroll trivia for you.”

Funeral services have passed as Carroll died on Feb. 25, at the age of 95, however, donations can still be made in his name to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, 465 Waverley Oaks Rd., Ste. 202, Waltham, MA 02452. There is also an online guestbook at gfdoherty.com. Carroll was interred at Norwood Cemetery.