AASHTO Journal - CTDOT Donates Project Award Winnings to Two Charities

The Connecticut Department of Transportation recently presented a $5,000 donation to the Andrew DiDomenico Memorial Foundation and a $5,000 donation to Connecticut Foodshare – donations made possible by CTDOT’s grand prize win at the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards, held last November in Salt Lake City at the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Annual Meeting.

[Above photo by CTDOT]

Created by AASHTO nearly 20 years ago, the America’s Transportation Awards competition highlights the positive impact of state department of transportation projects on communities nationwide.

CTDOT’s Fairfield Avenue Bridge project, which won the Grand Prize award decided by an independent panel of judges, swiftly addressed substantial infrastructure damage following a collision involving a flatbed tractor trailer and tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of fuel on I-95; a crash that led to a fire that engulfed the Fairfield Avenue Bridge in Norwalk for nearly two hours – destroying the two-span structure.

CTDOT crews worked around the clock to assess and demolish the bridge, enabling the highway below to reopen just days later. The new bridge was completed in just seven months, nearly $3 million under budget at a total cost of $17 million.

CTDOT received $10,000 along with its Grand Prize award; funds the agency chose to donate to these two organizations, which are making a meaningful impact in Connecticut communities.

The Andrew DiDomenico Memorial Foundation honors a valued member of the CTDOT team who was tragically killed by an impaired driver in a work zone in June 2024. CTDOT established this foundation to honor Andrew’s legacy by providing scholarships and donations in his name.

“We established [the foundation] to honor the life and legacy of Andrew, who was tragically killed at the young age of 26 while working for the CTDOT,” said Shari DiDomenico, his mother, in a statement.

“The mission of the foundation is to grant scholarships, make meaningful donations in Andrew’s memory, and to help raise awareness of increased work zone safety,” she added. “We are extremely grateful to receive this very generous gift. Thank you to the CTDOT for choosing us as one of the recipients.”

Meanwhile, Connecticut Foodshare works to support individuals and families across Connecticut by distributing nutritious food through local partner programs in an effort to alleviate hunger. They help serve the more than 500,000 people statewide who are “food insecure” – and through its network of food pantries and meal programs, they distributed 54 million pounds of food in 2025.

“We are incredibly grateful to CTDOT for selecting Connecticut Foodshare as a recipient of this generous donation,” said Jason Jakubowski, president and CEO of Connecticut Foodshare.

“We applaud CTDOT’s extraordinary work and their choice to reinvest this recognition back into the community,” he added. “This generosity will help ensure more families across Connecticut have access to the nutritious food they need.”

“Giving back to the communities we serve is at the heart of what we do at CTDOT,” noted Garrett Eucalitto, CTDOT commissioner and AASHTO’s immediate past president. “From the moment we were in the running for the Grand Prize, we knew we wanted to share this recognition with organizations that make a difference every day.”