Allen J. Adams in his U.S. Navy days.

Photo Credit: Contributed

Allen J. Adams

Photo Credit: Contributed

NORWALK, Conn. – Allen J. Adams, a Norwalker for nearly 50 years, died Thursday with his family by his side in his new home in Ocean Isle Beach, N.C. The U.S. Navy veteran served on the USS Leyte and USS Fiske during the Korean War. Adams once saved the life of his commanding officer's child while on shore duty as a lifeguard.

Adams was born in Queens, N.Y., and graduated from Pratt Institute. The engineer moved to Norwalk in 1962 to work at Norden. Later, he worked at Sikorsky Aircraft, a division of United Technologies, until he retired.

Adams was a league bowler, a doubles tennis player and a hunter who enjoyed the outdoors. He was a backyard birdwatcher and built birdhouses and recorded bird sightings. He liked to water ski and taught many of his friends to water ski on his boat. Adams was an avid golfer and celebrated his first hole-in-one at the Newtown Country Club. He enjoyed golfing with his good buddies and played the game for the companionship, not just the competition.

Adams was "a sharp dresser and a class act," according to his daughter, Suzanne Marie Engel. He was an ardent reader and shared his love of books with his "favorite" and only grandson Derek Allen Adams Engel. He enjoyed sharing bottles of homemade wine with his friends, loved birthdays and holidays, and enjoyed celebrating life's moments, big and small, with a great meal and a good glass of wine.

Engel said her father did not compromise his standard of living when he was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. "He sought out cutting-edge treatment at both Yale and Duke, two hospitals at the forefront of medical research," she said. "His optimism and wry sense of humor propelled him on his journey of more than seven years."

Adams and his wife of 57 years, Ann Marie Adams, lived on Pink Cloud Lane from 1962 to July 2010, when they sold the house they had built and moved to North Carolina. They had spent some winter months in the Carolinas and dreamed of moving there, his daughter said. First they rented a home on a golf course; last February they moved into a new home they had built, minutes from the beach and golf courses. "My dad really wanted to be in the Carolinas, and I'm glad he was able to realize his dream, if only for a short while," his daughter said.

He is survived by his wife, his daughter and son-in-law, Joe Engel, and his grandson. Mass was celebrated at St. Brendan the Navigator Roman Catholic Church in Shallotte, N.C.

Brunswick Funeral Service assisted the family with arrangements. Friends and family may sign the guest book and share memories at the funeral home's website.