Charles "Charlie" W. Cianciola

Charles “Charlie” William Cianciola, 23, originally of Southington, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, March 26, 2023, at his home.

Charlie was born on August 12, 1999, in New Britain to Thomas Cianciola and Christine (McGowan) Cianciola. He attended Southington High School for most of his time but graduated from Plainville High School.

During his time in Southington, Charlie was an avid sports player. He loved basketball, whether it be a pickup game with his neighborhood friends or playing in town rec. He enjoyed playing football for the town from flag through tackle and went on to play at Southington High School. He also played baseball, mostly on travel teams, and decided to play one year for little league baseball at Southington Rec Park. He was known for his outfield ability to catch any ball that came his way and for his speed in bunting and making it to first base or stealing bases. His speed led him to run track in high school until a torn ACL during football practice sidelined him. In the winters, he would enjoy playing ice hockey on the YMCA rink. The Southington YMCA was a place he spent a lot of his free time growing up. When he wasn’t playing sports, he enjoyed attending games to see his favorite teams; the Patriots, Yankees and the New York Rangers.

From the beginning, Charlie was born with an old soul and was lovingly called “little man,” as he found it easy to engage in conversations with adults. He loved playing with the Alpine Trail neighborhood kids and they would go from house to house depending on what activity they were doing. Charlie loved spending summers swimming with friends in his pool and having an August birthday meant a lot of pool birthdays.

Charlie had two favorite places. The first was New York City which he fell in love with and learned everything about. Anyone in the city with Charlie never needed a map when they visited because he was the guide. He even understood the difficult subway system and navigated onto the right one every time. He’d often take the train in from Waterbury and bring his brother with him.  His second favorite place was Oak Island, NC, where he loved to swim in the ocean and go crabbing with relatives.

Charlie will be missed for his big heart, infectious laugh and his long talks about the problems in the world. Time would fly by during these conversations. He had such a sense of humor and his laugh would brighten any room. He had many struggles in life but always managed to find a bit of humor in every situation.

While Charlie continued to try to decide what he wanted to do in life, he worked for a time at Southington Auto Wash and Hawk’s Landing Country Club.

In addition to his parents, Charlie is survived by his brother, Cole T. Cianciola of Southington, his paternal grandparents, Charles and Marion Cianciola of Palm Coast, FL and his maternal grandmother, Deborah McGowan of Southington. He is also survived by many aunts and uncles including, Jill Cianciola and her husband Jon Wagner of Southington, Lisa Slotter and her husband Brian of Naples, FL and Becky McGowan and Ed Kuchinski of Cheshire, as well as his cousins, Caitlin, Zachary, Hailey, Shaun, Nathan and Avari. He was predeceased by his maternal grandfather, William McGowan.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Charlie’s memory may be made to Wolcott Crossroads, Inc., POB 6001 Wolcott, CT 06716 (http://www.wolcottcrossroadsinc.com/).

A memorial service will be held at 12 noon on Friday, March 31, 2023, at the Plantsville Funeral Home, 975 S. Main St., Plantsville. To join the service virtually, please follow this link  https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/455719884/. Calling hours will be held before the service from 10:00 a.m. – 12 p.m. at the funeral home. For online condolences and directions, please visit www.plantsvillefuneralhome.com.