Every week, staff at InDepthNH.org looks at the websites of more than 75 funeral homes in New Hampshire and choose some of our friends, relatives and neighbors to feature in this column. The people featured here passed away during the previous week and are chosen at random. InDepthNH.org is now offering obituaries through the Legacy.com service. We view this as part of our public service mission. Click here or on the Obituaries tab at the top of our home page to learn more. And if you know of someone from New Hampshire who should be featured in this column, please send your suggestions to NancyWestNews@gmail.com.
Alfreda “Freda” A. (Grabiec) Smith, 94, of Windham, died Oct. 1, 2022. She was the co-owner of P.S. Tours Travel Company for 15 years, but her legacy transcends her tour business. She will be remembered by many as one of New Hampshire’s greatest advocates for the developmentally disabled. A state representative from 1977 to 1980, she served as the president of the Laconia State School ARC. In 1978, she was instrumental in the class action suit against the State of New Hampshire regarding the deplorable conditions at the institution. She contacted the U.S. Department of Justice, and they joined in the lawsuit, which resulted in the closing of the school. She received many awards, served on many charitable groups and state boards, and traveled to many states speaking about the closing of the state institution. In 2010, a documentary was made on the closing, titled “Lost in Laconia,” and was dedicated to her. (Carrier Family Funeral Home)
Kathy E. Nolin, 75, of Chichester, died Oct. 1, 2022. A resident of Chichester for the past 39 years, she was employed by the State of New Hampshire, working in Legislative Services. She later worked as secretary to the President of the Senate at the State House. Her great passion was rescuing all types of animals, but her family and children were her life. (Roan Family Funeral Homes)
Dr. Elwin R. Falkenham, 90, of Lancaster, died Oct. 1, 2022. He attended school in Dalton’s 2-room schoolhouse, completing 7th and 8th grade in one year, and from there went on to Lancaster High School, UNH, and Tufts Medical School. In 1958 he was drafted into the U.S. Navy and served as second lieutenant, Naval Doctor, at the Military Sea Transportation Service in Brooklyn and the U.S. Naval Air Station in Brunswick, Maine. After his term in the Navy, he returned to Lancaster and replaced Dr. David Cleasby on Main Street in Lancaster. In 1973 he and two other local physicians started the Regional Medical Professional Association, located across from Weeks Memorial Hospital, where he practiced general medicine until his retirement. He delivered hundreds of babies and assisted in surgery as an anesthesiologist. He served on the board of Lancaster National Bank for many years. (Bailey Funeral Home)
Glenn S. Barcome, 75, a longtime resident of Walpole, died Sept. 30, 2022. He owned and operated Lake Sunapee Insurance Agency and American Hardware Insurance for 30 years, with Lake Sunapee Insurance still in operation at the time of his death. He was also an avid tennis player, golf enthusiast and skier. He was a long-time member of the Keene Racquet Club and Hooper Golf Course. It was not unusual for Glenn to play three or four times a week, both on the court at his home, and the Racquet Club or at Hooper. He owned several classic cars, his favorite being Corvettes. (DiLuzio Foley And Fletcher Funeral Homes)
Robert A. “Bob” Maffee, 69, a lifelong resident of Nashua, died Sept. 30, 2022.
He grew up working with his father and brothers at Maffee’s Garage, where he became well known as a foreign car specialist. He founded Northern Foreign Car Parts in 1983 and despite obstacles, grew it into the successful business it is today. He coached youth baseball, beginning in the Nashua North Little League in 1972, at the age of 19. At various times over the next three decades, Bob coached numerous championship teams. He was a member of the Rising Sun Lodge #39 F & AM; Scottish Rite Bodies, Valley of Nashua and NH Consistory 32nd degree and the Shriners of New Hampshire. (Farwell Funeral Service)
Another Nashua car enthusiast known to many was Ronald Keith Lewis, 56, who owned and operated RK Auto Repair, and who died Oct. 4, 2022. He received one of his greatest gifts 33 years ago when his brother Terry donated one of his kidneys to Ronald. (Rochette Funeral Home and Cremation Services)
Manuel Phillip Costa, 76, of Salem, died Oct. 4, 2022. He was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War and afterwards was a licensed optician in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, operating his own shop on Main Street in Salem, and also working for Dr. Frederick Rose in Haverhill, Mass., and for Dr. Yvonne Tsai in Hampstead before becoming New Hampshire’s first “Traveling Optician.” (Goundrey Dewhirst Funeral Home and Cremation Service)
Madeleine D. Aucoin, 91, of Henniker, died Oct. 2, 2022. She served briefly on the Henniker School Board and also on the St. Theresa’s Parish Council. She was well known to be of great service to many elderly citizens of the town. She listened to Lawrence Welk and was one of the Red Sox most loyal fans. (Holt-Woodbury Funeral Home & Cremation Service)
Kathleen P. O’Brien, 38, of Strafford died Oct. 2, 2022. She was homecoming queen at Plymouth South High School in 2002 and earned accounting degrees from Stonehill College and the University of Connecticut. While working in an accounting firm in Boston, she joined Newmarket Fire & Rescue and decided to change careers. She worked for the North Hampton Police Department, Strafford County Sheriff’s Office in Dover, the Barrington Police Department, and the Newfields Police Department. She was in training to be the handler for the Strafford County Sheriff’s Office first comfort dog, Cara. Her husband, Steven W. O’Brien, is a sergeant with the Newmarket Police Department. (Kent & Pelczar Funeral Home & Crematory)
A man of many talents, William Charles (Bill) Keyes, 79, of Center Tuftonboro, died Oct. 1, 2022. He served as captain of the Wolfeboro Rescue Squad and worked for the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office. He was Tuftonboro police chief for over a decade and was also self-employed as a contractor and master electrician. He acquired his private pilot’s license in 1987 and started NorthEast Aerial photography. He also worked with Eastern Topographics in Wolfeboro, taking aerial photos. In addition, he was an architectural draftsman for C.W Abbott Inc. of Mirror Lake. He was known for hosting unofficial town meetings at the Tuftonboro General Store for decades. (Lord Funeral Home)
Frederick F. Campbell, 88, of Bedford, died Oct. 4, 2022. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean Conflict and was a co-owner of C & K Appliance Supply in Andover, Mass.. He was an active 20-year member and served as president of the Londonderry Lions Club. (Peabody Funeral Homes)
Eleanor “Ellie” F. Andrews, 94, of Hampton, formerly of Windham, died Oct. 3, 2022. Her family reports that she was a lifelong popular professional singer, performing into her 80s throughout New England and New York. (Remick & Gendron Funeral Home-Crematory)
Daniel J. Rutledge, 67, of Lebanon, died Oct. 5, 2022. He was a Little League coach for many years and for a time was president of the local Little League association. He was a volunteer for the American Heart Association, and he enjoyed his time as a ski instructor at Whaleback while the kids were young. Dan was so proud of being a part of a family business; Bridgman’s Furniture, going back to 1891. (Ricker Funeral Home)
Thomas Eccleston III, 82, of Bedford, died Oct. 3, 2022. He was a dedicated teacher and coach of football, hockey and baseball for 40 years at Pilgrim High School (R.I.) from 1963-83 and later at The Hill School (Pennsylvania), Holderness School, and Proctor Academy. (Rivet Funeral Home & Crematorium)
Richard Wagner, 74, of Center Barnstead, died Oct. 1, 2022. He was the second son of the family who ran the beloved Wagner Strawberry Farm. His family reports that if there was an opportunity to ramble through a woodlot, Dick wouldn’t pass it up, and he would all too frequently pull the truck over while out for a Sunday drive. He raised honey bees, was an avid gardener, and would walk through a forest or garden quoting the Latin name of every tree and flower. (Roan Family Funeral Home – Still Oaks Chapel)
Ian D. Ebinger, 37, of Littleton, died Oct. 2, 2022. He was known in the world of Granite State fine dining, serving as a sous chef at Jumpin Jay’s Fish Cafe, in Portsmouth and at the Little Grille 111 in Littleton. He also worked at The Rabbit Hill Inn, followed by The Gold House, Cold Mountain Cafe, Alburritos, and Rek Lis Brewing Company and Restaurant. (Ross Funeral Home Littleton Chapel)
A descendent of President Zachary Taylor, the 12th U.S. President who served from 1849-50, Lindsey Boyd-Robertson, 89, of Exeter, died Oct. 2, 2022. A native of Kentucky, he was a staff sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps in the Korean Conflict in 1951 and 1952. He worked for Ford Motor Credit Co. in the Washington, D.C., area, then in New Hampshire. He was a volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocate with CASA of New Hampshire for many years, representing abused and/or neglected children. Although, as President Taylor’s descendent, he had the right to be buried in the family section of the Zachary Taylor Cemetery in Louisville, Ky., he chose to have his final resting place in Exeter, where he lived for the past 40 plus years. (Stockbridge Funeral Home)
Francesca Arlene Latawiec, 65, of Exeter, died Oct. 1, 2022. Her decades-long career in the environmental sciences involved government postings in Washington, D.C.; Boston; and Concord, N.H. She most recently served as the principal planner of wetlands for the state of New Hampshire. She taught soil science and ecology as an adjunct professor at both Mount Washington College in Manchester and Lakes Region Community College in Laconia. She was an avid environmentalist, serving on local planning boards in Lyme and Center Barnstead, where she lived for over 30 years. She moved to Exeter in December 2021. (Stockbridge Funeral Home)