First and foremost, Armand Choiniere is a devoted family man. “We could not be happier for you to receive this honor. You have always set the bar high for honor, integrity and if I was given the ability to craft a Dad, the mold would be you,” said Sharon Kenney, Armand’s daughter. Armand “Bud” Choiniere played football for Bristol high school, competed on the semiprofessional level for the Middletown Warriors and was a member of the RheinMain Air Force European championship team in 1951. Choiniere also played baseball and basketball in the 1940s and 1950s in town. He played basketball in the Bristol Boys Club Senior Basketball League during the mid1950s. In 1963, he was one of the founding fathers of the Bristol Midget Football League – allowing kids at the grammar school level to have the opportunity to play organized football in town for the first time. Armand and his late wife of 50 years, Pat – who was also involved in the midget football program – became interested in the Bristol Special Olympics program, helping with baseball practice sessions for 14 years. A football umpire for over forty years, Choiniere also coached the sport, officiated in two state scholastic football championships and small college games, and was the longtime game clock operator at Muzzy Field and locally before finally calling it quits in 2015 – receiving a citation from the State of Connecticut on Thanksgiving Day for his service to the community at his final game. In 1999, he was elected to the Distinguished Service Honor Roll by the Central Connecticut Association of Football Officials and was the president of that organization in 1988 – the year Bristol Eastern won the Class MM football championship. Choiniere also umpired in the Bristol SloPitch Softball League for a dozen years in town. He’s a member of the Bristol Sports Hall of Fame, Class of 2005, and a member of the Bristol Tramps since 1988.