Leonard “Lenny” Stavrou
KH Class of 1951
In the 1940s, Lenny Stavrou, his twin sister Barbara, and his older brother Peter were wards of the state in Connecticut. It was a tough time for the young siblings. By Lenny’s own account, their early years were difficult and lacked the loving care of a stable, nurturing family.
Thankfully, that unhappy situation turned around when all three Stavrou children became residential students at Kurn Hattin Home and School for Children. They were finally in a stable home and receiving loving care from their new special extended family.
Lenny, who lived at Kurn Hattin from 1948 through 1951, says those were the best years of his youthful life. He explains, “My time at Kurn Hattin molded my personality. The compassion they showed me enhanced my future by teaching me lessons in kindness and giving me an important start to becoming a beneficial member of society.”
Looking back, Lenny isn’t quite sure how his father heard about Kurn Hattin and decided that it would be the right place for his children, but he’s thankful that his father made the connection.
“I’m forever indebted to Kurn Hattin for giving me what I needed to be successful in life.”
Lenny’s working life began alongside his father in their family restaurant, Ted’s Confectionary, in Norwich, Connecticut. It was open seven days a week, so they worked seven days a week. After high school, Lenny passed the University of Connecticut entrance exam but couldn’t get his father’s blessing to attend.
Ted’s Confectionary needed Lenny in order to remain solvent. “I remember telling my father that we wouldn’t make it just selling food, so I suggested that we put in a display case and sell sundry items like aspirin, candy, and cigarettes. When that happened, we turned a 300% profit.”
Lenny had a good head for business. Although he had a dramatic effect on his family’s bottom line, he still had his sights set on attending college and went to classes at night. During his working career, Lenny earned a two-year accounting degree, a four-year degree from the New London School of Business, and the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree from Mitchell College in New London, Connecticut.
With his accounting credentials under his belt and a stellar business reputation in the community, it wasn’t long before Lenny received an offer he couldn’t refuse and left Ted’s Confectionary for a job at the Connecticut Bank & Trust Company. Lenny worked his way up to the position of zone manager, handling the accounting responsibilities for five bank branches. Once again because of his reputation, Lenny was recruited by the Jewett City Trust Company to take on the responsibilities of automating the bank. “I didn’t want to go, but they doubled my salary and I had a family to think about,” Lenny recalls.
By 1989, Lenny was named president of Jewett City Trust Company. In his humble way, Lenny says his major source of pride wasn’t about reaching that level, it was more about building a team that worked well together. Lenny has always been empathetic and willing to go the extra mile for family, friends, and colleagues.
That kindness was also extended to his clients. Lenny says, “Jewett City was rural, and we did a lot of business with farmers. One farmer came to see me at the bank because he needed a $10k line of credit for grain and other things. I was happy to give him the line of credit, but he was cutting corn that year and couldn’t get to the bank to sign the paperwork. So I went home, put on boots, grabbed my briefcase, and headed out to his corn field. I waved him down on his tractor, and he signed the papers right there in the field. I took the time to go to him because that’s what he needed.”
Lenny has had a full life, including an outstanding professional career that brought him to the top of his chosen profession, a black belt in Judo with a number of championships to his credit, a wonderful family, and more.
But what is success to Lenny? He says, “Success is caring for people. I was checking out at a store during COVID, and when I took off my mask, the guy behind me started screaming out my name. He gave me a big hug and said, ‘Thank you for what you’ve done for my family.’ To this day, I still have absolutely no clue who he was, but that’s not the point. The point is that I helped him somewhere along the way, and it made a difference.”
For the students who currently live and learn at Kurn Hattin, Lenny shares this advice, “Learn compassion, it can bring you a long way in life.”
It has for Lenny.