From heroes to titans of business, the court, legislative chambers, town halls, and every place in between, New Hampshire lost in 2023 many of the people who helped create its special character.
It was a year that saw the loss of the nation’s former poet laureate, Pulitzer Prize winner Charles Simic, as well as the passing of former Senate President Edward C. Dupont Jr., 72, of Durham, who had become a successful lobbyist.
We lost U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit Judge Norman H. Stahl, 92, a Manchester native who died April 8, 2023. Also, Paul J. Holloway Jr., 84, of Rye, a car dealer who did so much for the state’s colleges that he’s had several buildings named for him at UNH, Keene State College, Plymouth State University, and Great Bay Community College. He passed away on March 14, 2023.
There was Bishop Joseph J. Gerry, O.S.B., the former auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Manchester and 10th bishop of the Diocese of Portland, Maine, who died July 2, 2023, at age 92; and Mike Pride, 76, of Palm Harbor, Fla., and Concord, editor emeritus of the Concord Monitor, who died April 24, 2023.
A welcome voice of the North Country, Briggs H. Bunker, 92, of North Conway, died Sept. 9, 2023. He was perhaps best known in the Mount Washington Valley as the morning weatherman who gave the daily weather report on the local radio station for 40-plus years, with his show always ending with a daily weather rating between 0 and 50 cents. Anyone in the valley knew that a beautiful day with blue skies was a “50-Centah!”
No fewer than nine former fire chiefs who served their communities passed away during the year.
Many elected and appointed officials at both the town and state levels with decades of experience passed away during the year. They included 52-year Jefferson Town Clerk Opal L. Bronson who died Jan. 14, 2023, at age 83; 39-year Plainfield Town Clerk and Tax Collector Ruth Ann “Roo” Wheeler, 80, who died March 10, 2023; 32-year Stratham Town Clerk and Tax Collector Joyce Ann (Barker) Rowe, 88, who died Oct. 15, 2023; and 21-year Laconia School Board member Judith (Taylor) Reever, 82, who died June 26, 2023. She was also a state legislator who was instrumental in helping pass kindergarten for all N.H. students.
Peter Meldrim Thomson, 81, of Orford, former chief of staff to his father, Gov. Meldrim Thomson, died Jan. 3, 2023. He was the longtime director of the New Hampshire Highway Safety Agency.
Former Franklin Police Chief Bradley T. Haas, 63, was killed Nov. 17, 2023, while providing security at New Hampshire Hospital in Concord. He was unarmed and manning the front entrance in the hospital’s lobby when a shooter killed him, and the shooter was then killed by a state trooper on duty.
Well-known Dartmouth College football coach Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens, 66, honored as the New England Coach of the Year three times, died Sept. 19, 2023, after being injured in a bicycle accident in Florida in March.
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We list below the passings of many notable New Hampshire residents, beginning with those considered heroes and noting the many who left us denoted by the areas of endeavor from which we knew them best. (This listing was updated on Dec. 31, 2023.)
HEROES
Sary Saing, 80, of Dover and a native of Cambodia, died Feb. 26, 2023. He was caught up in the brutal conflict in Cambodia during the early sixties, fighting for the Cambodian Army of the Khmer Republic against the Communist Viet Cong army, which by 1975 took control of the country. Sary, his wife and four children, ranging in age from 3 to 13, were forced to flee into the forest, where all but Sary starved to death by 1976. (Tasker Funeral Home)
Joseph B. Coleman, 94, of Ashland, a former Roman Catholic priest, died March 6, 2023. He left the priesthood in 1984 to marry his wife, but before he did, he was credited with saving more than a dozen lives of people attempting suicide on the Newport, R.I., Bridge. He was recognized by the Rhode Island House of Representatives in 1978 for climbing the bridge cable 400 feet above Narragansett Bay to lead a woman to safety. He received the Andrew Carnegie Medal for heroism in 1966 for rescuing two young parishioners from a disturbed gunman. (Dupuis Funeral Home)
Leo Rene Goyette, 84, of Laconia, died April 25, 2023. He received a hero award from the state for pulling a pilot from his burning plane after it crashed upside down outside of Tangent Tool in the Laconia Industrial Park. (Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home)
Elizabeth J. “Betty” Forrest-Voter, 92, of Salem, died July 10, 2023. She was a passionate advocate and volunteer for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, fighting diligently for the rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities. She worked tirelessly with the state and the town of Salem to create the Debbie Voter Center. (Goundrey Dewhirst Funeral Home)
Staff Sgt. Tanner Wolf Grone, 25, of Gorham, died Nov. 10, 2023, in a military training crash of an MH-60 Blackhawk helicopter while in the Eastern Mediterranean sea. He and four other servicemen were killed. His career included joining the Night Stalkers Army Special forces, where he became a crew chief on a Blackhawk gunship. (Bryant Funeral Homes)
Bradley T. Haas, 63, of Franklin, died Nov. 17, 2023, while providing security at New Hampshire Hospital in Concord. The retired Franklin police chief was unarmed and manning the front entrance in the hospital’s lobby when a shooter killed him, and the shooter was then killed by a state trooper on duty. Haas was employed by the N.H. Department of Safety as a security officer. (Thibault-Neun and Paquette-Neun Funeral Homes)
PHILANTHROPISTS
Roy Malool, 96, of Newport, died Jan. 15, 2023. He formed the private Roy Malool Family Foundation to fund Newport community projects, including the bronze bust of Sara Josepha Hale in the Richards Free Library park. In 2010, he donated a one-room schoolhouse in Dodge Hollow to the Lempster Historical Society. (Newton-Bartlett Funeral Home)
Alvin Henry Rodgers, 91, of Nashua and formerly of Windham and Fort Myers, Fla., died Feb. 15, 2023. He, his brother Phil, and Rodgers Brothers Builders built 2,500 single-family homes, 450 apartment units, 600 mini storage units, and the Nashua Tennis Center. They donated $4 million to the town of Hudson to build the George H. and Ella M. Rodgers Memorial Library. (Farwell Funeral Home)
Paul J. Holloway Jr., 84, of Rye, president of the Holloway Automotive Group, with four car dealerships located in Portsmouth, Greenland, Exeter, and Manchester, died March 14, 2023. He served for 20 years on the board of trustees of the Community College System of New Hampshire, several years as chairman. He had many college buildings named for him due to his significant contributions, including Holloway Commons at UNH, Holloway Hall at Keene State College, Holloway Auditorium at Plymouth State University, and the Paul J. Holloway Student Success Center at Great Bay Community College. He and his wife Anna Grace donated $1 million to the Foundation for New Hampshire Community Colleges to establish an endowed scholarship.
William Givens, 82, of Durham, died March 21, 2023. He was a mechanical engineer with a talent for rescuing failing companies, and most of his family’s 233-acre ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyo., located across the Snake River from Grand Teton National Park, is held in a conservation easement. (Lucas & Eaton Funeral Home, York, Maine)
Rosalind W. Slavic, 102, of Fitzwilliam, died Sept. 10, 2023. An artist and an author, she and her husband Fred donated 300 acres of their land to the Northeast Wilderness Trust. The Rosalind and Fred Slavic Wilderness Preserve in Fitzwilliam is surrounded on three sides by the Rhododendron State Park and has been protected for future generations. (Compassionate Cremation Center of New Hampshire)
Philip Preston, 84, of Ashland, died Nov. 16, 2023. He published the Appalachian Mountain Club’s River Guide, Volumes 1 and 2, and also authored White Mountains West in 1979, a trail guide for the White Mountains west of Crawford Notch. He was executive director of the Squam Lakes Association and a trustee on the board of the Lakes Region Conservation Trust. He conserved his 765-acre hilltop Homestead Farm, now permanently protected public land. (Knight Funeral Homes & Crematory, White River Junction, Vt.)
MILITARY
David Knox Barton, 95, of Hanover and formerly of Lexington and Harvard, Mass., died Feb. 11, 2023. A U.S. Army veteran, he tracked German V-2 rockets while in the service and worked as a radar engineer at White Sands from 1949 to 1953, before helping develop radar for instrumentation of missile test ranges. (Ricker Funeral Homes & Crematory)
John W. Adams, 89, of Windham, died April 1, 2023. A U.S. Navy veteran, he served 30 years on the Fleet Reserve Association and participated in the Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba in May 1961 on board the USS Boston CAG-1. (Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium)
Commander Joseph J. Vinciguerra Jr., USN, Retired, 83, of Rye and a native of Portsmouth, died June 17, 2023. He assumed duties as commander of Military Sealift Command in Southwest Asia in 1990. (J. Verne Wood Funeral Home – Buckminster Chapel)
Lt. Col. James W. Neely, Jr., USAF (Ret.), 85, of Amherst, died July 6, 2023. He served on the U.S. European Command and was on the battle staff for the Arab-Israeli War. (Smith & Heald Funeral Home)
Russell Van Billiard, 93, of Portsmouth, died Aug. 24, 2023. He served in the U.S. Navy and was commissioned a lieutenant, junior grade (LTJG). He worked at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard as a submarine design engineer, and later as a shipyard business manager, but he was best known as a founding member and director of the U.S.S. Albacore Committee, which brought the historic submarine to Portsmouth. (J. Verne Wood Funeral Home – Buckminster Chapel)
Major General (ret.) Roland Lajoie, 87, of Wilton, died Oct. 28, 2023. He was one of the U.S. Army’s foremost experts on the Soviet military. He served two combat tours in Vietnam as an intelligence officer before learning Russian to specialize in the Soviet Union. He was a military attaché in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow and later chief military liaison in Potsdam, East Germany. (Michaud Funeral Home & Crematorium)
FIRE SERVICE
William E. Kingdon, 94, of Londonderry, died Jan. 14, 2023. He started in 1955 as a call fireman for the Salem Fire Department, becoming chief in 1972. He retired in 1980 (Peabody Funeral Homes & Crematorium)
Todd T. Gregory, 51, of Unity, died Feb. 16, 2023. He was the former fire chief of the town of Unity, serving from 2019 to 2022. He spent 28 years on the Unity department. (Stringer Funeral Home)
Stephen A. Black, 78, of Dublin, died July 2, 2023. He was fire chief in Wellesley, Mass., and moved to Peterborough in 1992, where he served as fire chief until his retirement in 2002. (Jellison Funeral Home)
Atkinson Fire Chief Brian S. Murray, 52, of Salem, died July 30, 2023. He was appointed fire chief in Atkinson in 2021. He was a firefighter/EMT for Durham from 1991 to 2003, firefighter/EMT for Manchester from 2003-2006, and a member of the Salem Fire Department for nearly 15 years. (Carrier Family Funeral Home)
Stephen W. Tunberg, 76, of Sandown, died Aug. 16, 2023. He served with the Chester Fire Department for more than 20 years, many spent as fire chief. (Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium)
Wayne F. Crowell, 85, a longtime resident of Marlborough, died Sept. 11, 2023. He was a trustee and chairman of the board of Cheshire Medical Center and Cheshire Health Foundation. He was a volunteer firefighter for 40 years with the UNH Fire Department, Keene Fire Department and the Marlborough Fire Department, retiring as chief of the Marlborough Fire Department. (Foley Funeral Home)
Rodney T. Boyd, 85, of Barnstead, died Sept. 26, 2023. He was a 60-year member of the Center Barnstead/Barnstead Fire Department, first as a volunteer, then later fire chief. (Roan Family Funeral Home-Still Oaks Chapel)
Paul A. Szoc, 72, a lifelong resident of Keene, died Oct. 16, 2023. He was retired chief of Southwestern N.H. District Fire Mutual Aid and retired deputy chief of the Keene Fire Department Call Company Operations. (Foley Funeral Home)
Capt. Michael Clark, 75, of Strafford, died in early November. He was a retired member of the Hanover Fire Department and a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. He worked at the Hanover Fire Department for 34 years, retiring in 2009. He was also an instructor at the N.H. Fire Academy, and his fellow firefighters have commended him as one of the most passionate fire instructors they have ever known. (Hanover Fire Department)
Jessica Wyman, 51, of Merrimack and a retired lieutenant on Nashua Fire Rescue, died Nov. 28, 2023. She served 16 years with Nashua Fire Rescue and had previously worked for Merrimack Fire Rescue as a firefighter/paramedic for nearly 10 years. (Rivet Funeral Home)
Paul S. Wentworth, 86, of Hampstead, died Dec. 13, 2023. He was a founding member of the Hampstead Rescue Squad in 1974 and a volunteer with the Hampstead Fire Department, serving as chief three times during his 40 years of service. (Brookside Chapel & Funeral Home)
Lt. Charles A. Gallant, 56, of North Hampton, died Dec. 14, 2023. He was a volunteer with the Hampton Falls Fire Department in 1997 before accepting a full-time position with the Rye Fire Department, where he worked for more than 20 years. He was awarded for risking his life rescuing a fellow firefighter during the fire aboard the submarine, the USS Miami in 2012.
Raymond A. Dick, 60, of Wilton, died Dec. 21, 2023. He was a member of the Wilton Fire Department for 35 years and served 20 years as chief. (Smith & Heald Funeral Home)
Francis E. “Sparky” Stoddard, 78, of Enfield, died Dec. 21, 2023. He started in 1965 with the Lebanon Fire Department. In 1969, he joined the Hanover Fire Department, serving until 1975 when he was appointed chief of the Lebanon Fire Department, where he served until 1984. (Ricker Funeral Homes & Crematory)
SPORTS
William “Billy” Pappas, 89, of Manchester, died March 27, 2023. He was a well-known three-sport standout in football, basketball and baseball at both Manchester High School West and UNH. (Legacy.com)
Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens, 66, head football coach at Dartmouth College in Hanover for 22 seasons, died Sept. 19, 2023, after being injured in a bicycle accident in Florida in March. He was honored as the New England Coach of the Year three times. (Dartmouth College)
LAW/LAW ENFORCEMENT
The Hon. Norman H. Stahl, 92, ofNeedham, Mass., and a native of Manchester, died April 8, 2023. He was appointed a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in 1992 and served until his retirement in 2020. Judge Stahl was nominated to the federal bench in 1990 by President George H. W. Bush, and he served on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire until 1992, when Bush nominated him to the federal appeals court to replace David Souter, whom Bush named to the U.S. Supreme Court. (Lambert Funeral Home)
Lt. John Karl Scarinza (Ret.), 63, of Randolph, died April 22, 2023. He started his career with the Gorham Police Department, joining the New Hampshire State Police in 1982. He rose through the ranks to become lieutenant commander of Troop F based in Twin Mountain, retiring in 2009. He twice served as interim Gorham police chief in 1994-95 and 2019. (Bryant Funeral Home)
Edmund M. LeBoeuf, 90, of Manchester, died April 28, 2023. He began his law enforcement career in 1956 as a patrolman with the Manchester Police Department, rising through the ranks to deputy police chief of the detective division. (Connor-Healy Funeral Home and Cremation Center)
Robert D’Alessandro, 87, of Pembroke, died Sept. 8, 2023. He had a more than 20-year career with the New York City Police Department, then moved to Deerfield where he began his second career, with the Deerfield Police Department where he became chief, retiring in 1995. (Roan Family Funeral Home)
Michael T. French, 68, of Manchester, died Dec. 24, 2023. He served on the Goffstown Police Department for 35 years and retired as chief. (Connor-Healy Funeral Home and Cremation Center)
PUBLIC SERVICE
Peter Meldrim Thomson, 81, of Orford, former chief of staff to his father, Gov. Meldrim Thomson, died Jan. 3, 2023. He was appointed by President Reagan and then by President Bush as the N.H. State Director of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service. He was also director of the New Hampshire Highway Safety Agency for many years. (Mayhew Funeral Home)
Opal L. Bronson, 83, of Jefferson, died Jan. 14, 2023. She served as Jefferson Town Clerk for 52 years. (Bailey Funeral Home)
The Hon. Gerald J. Carney, 82, of New London, died Jan. 21, 2023. He was appointed a special justice to the New London District Court in 1981 and to the Newport District Court in 1989. He was also the city attorney for the city of Keene from 1981 to 2007. (Chadwick Funeral Home)
Mary M. (Uhl) (Doggett) Allen, 92, of Newton, a nine-term state representative, died Feb. 3, 2023. She owned and operated Allen’s Country Store in Newton. (Brookside Chapel & Funeral Home)
The Hon. Gary Sean Hopper, 66, of Weare, died Feb. 12, 2023. He was a state representative for Weare, Goffstown and Deering from 2008-2022 (French & Rising Funeral Home)
Former Senate President Edward C. Dupont Jr., 72, of Durham, who started one of the state’s pre-eminent lobbying firms, the Dupont Group, after serving five terms in the New Hampshire State Senate, representing District 6, died Feb. 16, 2023. (Tasker Funeral Service)
The Hon. Paul Mirski, 79, of Enfield, who served as a state representative for 12 years, died Feb. 19, 2023. He was also an architect and expert in preservation planning and restoration. (Rand-Wilson Funeral Home)
Margaret “Peggy” Teravainen, 69, of Hooksett, died Feb. 25, 2023. She was a Hooksett School Board member for nine years. (Roan Family Funeral Home)
Herbert Douglas Richardson Jr., 72, of Lancaster, died March 7, 2023. He spent almost 40 years on local school boards, as a selectman, on budget committees and many years as a state representative, from 2002 to 2006 and 2008 to 2018. (Bailey Funeral Home)
Ruth Ann “Roo” Wheeler, 80, of Plainfield,died March 10, 2023. She served as Plainfield’s town clerk and tax collector for 39 years. (Ricker Funeral Homes & Crematory)
The Hon. Karen Keegan-Hutchinson, 76, of Londonderry, died March 26. She was a state representative representing Londonderry for more than 20 years. (Peabody Funeral Homes & Crematorium)
Ann Trugman Ackerman, Ph.D., 76, a longtime resident of Nashua, died April 22, 2023. She was elected four times to the Nashua Board of Alderman, representing Ward 1. She was also one of the founders of the Mayor’s Ethnic Awareness Committee. (Davis Funeral Home)
Former State Sen. Roger C. Heath, 80, of Salisbury, died May 18, 2023. He was elected to the N.H. House of Representatives for three terms, and to the N.H. State Senate for four terms. (Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services)
Judith (Taylor) Reever, 82, of Laconia, died June 26, 2023. She served 21 years on the Laconia School Board and was a state legislator, serving on the house education committee, where she was instrumental in helping pass kindergarten for all N.H. students. (Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services)
Steven J. Winter, 84, of Newbury, died July 15, 2023. He ran for New Hampshire governor as a Libertarian in 1994, worked for John McCain’s 2000 campaign, and was twice elected to the N.H. House. He was elected two times as the clerk and chief legislative officer of the New Hampshire Senate. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
Henriette (Raymond) Girard, 90, of Allenstown, died July 15, 2023. She was a teacher at Pembroke Academy for 22 years and served as Allenstown tax collector and town administrator. (Roan Family Funeral Home)
Gordon B. Flint Jr., 74, of Newport, died July 28, 2023. At age 21, he was one of Newport’s representatives to the General Court, the youngest member of the legislature that year. He served on the school board and was a judge in the District Court in Newport. (Newton-Bartlett Funeral Home)
Franklin Goodale Torr, 93, of Dover, died Aug. 3, 2023. He served 18 years in the N.H. House of Representatives and State Senate. He also served on the Pease Development Authority, Skyhaven Airport Authority, and N.H. Ballot Law Commission. (Tasker Funeral Service)
Joseph M. Dubiansky, 76, of Deerfield, died Aug. 12, 2023. An attorney in southern New Hampshire for nearly 50 years, he was a fixture in Deerfield on many town boards and committees. (Roan Family Funeral Home – Still Oaks Chapel)
Eugene Leo Gagnon, 80, of Londonderry and a longtime resident of Manchester and Largo, Fla., died Aug. 21, 2023. He was a N.H. state representative for Hillsborough District 48, serving from 1990 to 2000. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Evelyn Auger, 89, of Sanbornton, died July 22, 2023. She was member of the Sanbornton Planning Board for more than 20 years, serving as chairman multiple times. She was a library trustee, selectman, and a long-time member of the Sanbornton Historical Society, serving as president. (Thibault-Neun Funeral Home)
Former state Sen. Robert E. Clegg Jr., 69, of Hudson, died Aug. 31, 2023. He was Republican Majority Leader of the State Senate from 2002 through 2006 and is a former speaker pro temp of the House and senior partner at Legislative Solutions, a New Hampshire-based government relations firm. He ran for Congress in 2008. (Farwell Funeral Service)
Donald William (Underhill) Dollard, 88, of Auburn, died Sept. 7, 2023. He was an Auburn selectman, cemetery trustee, and chairman of Auburn’s 150th anniversary celebration. (Connor-Healy Funeral Home & Cremation Center)
Doreen Mary Moore, 83, of Danville, died Aug. 31, 2023. She served two terms as a Danville selectmen starting in 1989 and was a deputy town clerk for a number of years before being elected town clerk in 1997. (Brewitt Funeral Home)
Maureen Riordan Mann, 79, of Deerfield, died Sept. 10, 2023. She was elected as a Democratic state representative representing Deerfield, Northwood, Nottingham, and Candia from 2008-2010 and 2012-2014. (Legacy.com)
Ellen-Ann (Thomson) Robinson, 73, of Surf City, N.C., and formerly of North Hampton and Litchfield, died Sept. 22, 2023. While in Litchfield, she served as a member of the town’s planning and zoning boards. She also served on the school board for 20 years. She was elected to the state legislature in 1983 and served for five terms. (Remick & Gendron Funeral Home – Crematory)
Joyce Ann (Barker) Rowe, 88, of Stratham, died Oct. 15, 2023. She was the Stratham town clerk and tax collector from 1967 until her retirement in 1998. (Stockbridge Funeral Home)
Bruce B. Ellsworth, 85, of Hopkinton, died Oct. 25, 2023. He worked for the state Public Utilities Commission for 26 years, ending his career as a commissioner. He served on the Hopkinton Planning Board and as town moderator. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
William P. Brennan, 92, of Rochester, died Oct. 27, 2023. He served on the Rochester School Board, city council, and in the state legislature. (R.M. Edgerly & Son Funeral Home)
Dawn Foster Hatch, 84, of Barrington, died Oct. 28, 2023. She was involved with zoning reform that led to Barrington’s Village District and Town Center. She served on the planning board as chairperson and secretary. She was the land use clerk and two-term selectman until 2020. (Purdy Funeral Service)
Rep. Hoy Robert Menear III, of Lee, died in November. He served on the House State-Federal Relations and Veterans Committee. He served in the district that included Dover Ward 4, Lee and Madbury. (N.H. House Democratic Leader’s Office)
Kenneth Paul Hughes Sr., 90, of Silver Lake, died Nov. 15, 2023. He served in the FBI from 1962-1987 as a special agent, with expertise in firearms and fingerprints. Special assignments took him to Dallas in 1963 for the Kennedy assassination and to Selma, Ala., for civil rights investigations in 1965. (Lord Funeral Home)
Attorney Frank Heffron, 87, of Exeter, a former N.H. state representative, died Nov. 15, 2023. He worked as an attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, working on the desegregation of motels in the South during the 1960s. (Brewitt Funeral Home)
Theodore J. “Ted” Cusson Sr., 87, of Manchester, died Nov. 26, 2023. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1987 and was appointed by former Manchester Mayor Emile Beaulieu as the administrative assistant for the city (Lambert Funeral Home)
Rita Emma Purmort, 102, of Goshen, died Nov. 27, 2023. She was a veteran of the U.S. Navy WAVES and a past member of Goshen’s Zoning Board, Conservation Commission, Budget Committee, Supervisor of the Checklist, and Historical Society. In 1958 she was one of the first members of the Goshen-Lempster School Board. (Newton-Bartlett Funeral Home)
Theodore “Ted” W. Walski, 79, of Langdon, died Dec. 2, 2023. He was well-known for his efforts as a state wildlife biologist to reintroduce wild turkeys into the state. (Baker-Gagne Funeral Homes)
Kris Edwin Durmer, 73, of Nashua, died Dec. 9, 2023. He was a special assistant to the late U.S. Sen. Thomas J. McIntyre (D-N.H.) and was appointed by President Bill Clinton to the board of directors of Sallie Mae, serving as vice chair and acting chair. In 2009, he was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as general counsel of the General Services Administration. (Davis Funeral Home)
Becky Jean Merrow, 54, of Colebrook, died Dec. 18, 2023. She was the town clerk in Northumberland before becoming the town administrator for Lancaster, then town manager for the towns of Colebrook, Grantham, and Wolfeboro. She was a member of the Vermont Bar Association and was currently working as an attorney and licensed insurance broker in New Hampshire. (Armstrong-Charron Funeral Home)
James Alfred Masiello, 83, of Hampton and Fort Myers, Fla., died Dec. 22, 2023. He served two terms as the youngest mayor of Keene, in office from 1972 to 1975. He was a member of the Keene Planning Board and City Council. He ran for U.S. Senate in 1978 and served as chairman of the state Department of Education. (J.S. Waterman Langone Chapel, Boston)
MEDICAL FIELD
Philanthropist, entrepreneur, and Portsmouth gastroenterologist Dr. Geoffrey E. Clark, 84, of Portsmouth, died Jan. 10, 2023. He and his wife, former state Sen. Martha Fuller Clark, have been generous benefactors to New Hampshire groups serving children, women, and the environment. The Clarks served on more than 40 boards over the years. Dr. Clark served for more than 32 years as a doctor at Gastroenterology Professional Association. (Lucas & Eaton Funeral Home, York, Maine)
Dr. Alphonse Joseph (Skip) Homicz Jr., 77, of New Castle and formerly of Peterborough, died Jan. 10, 2023. He was president of the New Hampshire Dental Society and was awarded a fellowship in the prestigious International College of Dentists. He had a private dental practice in Antrim, where he was a dentist for 35 years. (Remick & Gendron Funeral Home and Crematory)
Dr. John William Hurley, 84, of Manchester, died Feb. 7, 2023. He was a captain and surgeon in the U.S Air Force and opened his oral surgery practice on Webster Street, where he practiced until his retirement. He was a past president of the Manchester Dental Society. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Chris T. Armen DDS, 93, of Lebanon, died March 19, 2023. He was a dentist in Newport and Lebanon for 37 years and was president of the N.H. Dental Society. He was a member of the Newport School Board and Budget Committee and moved to Lebanon after retirement, serving on the planning board. (Knight Funeral Homes & Crematory, White River Junction, Vt.)
Dr. Don A. Holshuh, 74, of Surry, died April 7, 2023. He started his medical career in 1976, practicing general medicine, then dermatology from 1979 to his retirement in 2012. He was a past president of the N.H. Medical Society. (Foley Funeral Home)
James Russell Bell, 79, of Enfield, died May 19, 2023. He was chief of cardiology at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, Vt., serving 41 years. He was an associate professor at Dartmouth Medical School. (Rand-Wilson Funeral Home)
Craig A. Storm, M.D., 65, of Lebanon, died July 6, 2023. An ordained Roman Catholic priest, he entered medical school in 1992 and became a pathology resident at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, where he was a staff physician. (Ricker Funeral Homes & Crematory)
Dr. Roland H. Bryan D.D.S., 91, of Bedford, died Aug. 11, 2023. He had a private dental practice in Manchester for more than 50 years. He taught at Tufts Dental School, treated patients at the N.H. state correctional facilities and assisted several nonprofit dental clinics in Concord and Manchester. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Dr. Robert R. Moheban, 93, of Nashua, died Oct. 16, 2023. A native of Tehran, Iran, he moved to the U.S. in 1956 to pursue his medical career. He was a board-certified general and vascular/thoracic surgeon and practiced in Nashua for 35 years. He was chief of surgery, chairman of the surgical department, director of the trauma service and president of the medical staff at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center. (Farwell Funeral Service)
Jean Robert-Joseph Chagnon, 77, of Bedford, died Oct. 28, 2023. He retired from his 50-year dental practice in 2022, first in Manchester and later moving to Bedford. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Dr. Benjamin Potter, M.D., 93, of Kittery Point, Maine, died Nov. 8, 2023. He helped found the Concord Clinic (the first multi-specialty clinic in New Hampshire), which later became part of Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, where he practiced for 35 years. He taught at Dartmouth Medical School. (J.S. Pelkey Funeral Home)
Michael J. O’Connell, M.D., 70, of Barrington, died Nov. 13, 2023. He developed an extensive medical/surgical practice (Paincare/Granite State Pain) that still spans central and southern New Hampshire. He also founded an opioid addiction practice (ROAD to a Better Life) in 2002. (Tasker Funeral Service)
Dr. James F. Conway Jr., of Bedford, died Dec. 2, 2023. A U.S. Army veteran, he was a urologist in private practice and a founder of Manchester Urology Associates. He served on the Elliot Hospital board of trustees for more than 20 years, including three years as chairman. (Connor-Healy Funeral Home and Cremation Center)
CLERGY
The Rev. Lorene Heath Potter, 91, of New London, died May 25, 2023. She was ordained an Episcopal minister in 1987 and served in churches in Buffalo, N.Y., including St. Thomas’s Episcopal Church as pastor. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
Bishop Joseph J. Gerry, O.S.B., the former auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Manchester and 10th bishop of the Diocese of Portland, Maine, 94, died July 2, 2023. He served as the third Abbot of Saint Anselm College from 1972 to 1986. Pope John Paul II appointed him the Manchester Diocese’s auxiliary bishop in 1986. In late 1988, the Pope named him to head the Portland Diocese, where he remained until 2004. (Lambert Funeral Home)
The Rev. Cecil John Donahue, 94, a beloved monk, priest, educator, administrator, and music composer at Saint Anselm Abbey in Manchester for more than 75 years, died Nov. 19, 2023. He taught in the college as assistant professor of German and theology until his appointment as director of physical plant operations in 1972. For many years, he was the abbey’s choirmaster and cantor. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
The Rev. James R. Young Sr., 77, of Epsom, died Nov. 26, 2023. He was pastor of New Rye Union Congregational Church, from 1996 to 2022. (Roan Family Funeral Home – Still Oaks Chapel)
Rev. Edward J. Charest, 80, of Moultonborough, died Nov. 17, 2023. He served at various Methodist churches in New Hampshire, including Milford United Methodist Church, Salem United Methodist Church, Moultonboro United Methodist Church, and Plymouth United Methodist Church. He was interim pastor at Center Conway UMC. He was a Moultonborough selectman. (Mayhew Funeral Homes)
EDUCATORS
Pulitizer Prize-winning poet Charles Simic, 84, the nation’s Poet Laureate from 2007 to 2008, died Jan. 9, 2023, at an assisted living facility in Dover. He taught courses in American literature and creative writing for decades at UNH. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1990 for “The World Doesn’t End.” (Wiggin-Purdy-McCooey-Dion Funeral Home)
Dr. Alfred W. St. Cyr, 90, a longtime resident of Manchester, died Jan. 24, 2023. A U.S. Army veteran, he opened the Manchester Conservatory of Music and Al St. Cyr Accordion Studios. He was director of music education for Manchester schools and also served as superintendent of schools in Groveton and Raymond. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Peter H. Warburton, 74, of Strafford, died April 14, 2023. The former superintendent of schools for SAU 53, comprised of the school districts of Pembroke, Deerfield, Epsom, Chichester, and Allenstown, he was also superintendent of SAU 39, which includes Amherst, Mont Vernon, and Souhegan Cooperative School Districts. (Kent & Pelczar Funeral Home & Crematory)
Nancy (Hannah Maude) Carney, of Salem and most recently of Freedom, died May 8, 2023. She served as the director of adult education for the Salem School District for 22 years. In 2021 the school district named the continuing education program for those with developmental disabilities as the Nancy Carney Pathways for Extended Learning Program in her honor. (Douglas & Johnson Funeral Home)
Denise T. Askin, Ph.D, 76, of Manchester and formerly of Bedford, died June 6, 2023. She held a PhD. In American Literature from the University of Notre Dame, and an honorary doctorate from Saint Anselm College, where she taught for many years. She was a professor of English at St. Anselm College since 1972, as well as executive vice president for 11 years and as a member of the board of trustees. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
Roger D. Masters, 90, of Hanover, died June 22, 2023. He was a longtime professor of government at Dartmouth College. He retired in 1998 as the Nelson A. Rockefeller Professor of Government Emeritus. He was best known for work in political philosophy. (Rand-Wilson Funeral Home)
Robin (Marian) Aikman, 93, of Rollinsford, died Sept. 17, 2023. She was a passionate educator and founding member of the Fayerweather Street School in Cambridge, Mass., and the Strafford Rivers Conservancy in Dover. She was a Strafford County Conservation District supervisor for more than 30 years. ( McIntire-McCooey Funeral Home)
Rosalind Ekman Ladd, 89, of Lancaster and Providence, R.I., died Oct. 6, 2023. She was a professor of philosophy at Wheaton College for more than 30 years and a visiting professor in biomedical ethics at Brown University. (Bailey Funeral Home)
John F. Wilson, 90, of Peterborough, died Oct. 5, 2023. He joined the Princeton University faculty in 1960, where he remained until his retirement in 2003. He was a historian of American religious history. He was director of the Princeton Project on Church and State and was president of the American Society of Church History. (Jellison Funeral Home)
Dr. Charlotte J. Sanborn, 98, of Hanover, died Oct. 7, 2023. She was director and counselor for the Faculty-Employee Assistance Program at Dartmouth College, where she was an assistant professor of clinical psychiatry since 1977. (Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services)
Dr. Meg Joanna Petersen, 69, of Plymouth, died Oct. 19, 2023. She taught at Plymouth State University and was a professor in the English Department for 30 years. She was awarded both the Undergraduate and Graduate Distinguished Teaching Awards (2000 and 2006); the Stevens-Bristow Distinguished Professorship (2014-2017); and the Dennise Maslakowski Education Award (2016). (Mayhew Funeral Homes and Crematorium)
Robert Bernard McCarthy, 87, of Tarrytown, N.Y., and formerly of Hanover, N.H., died Oct. 22, 2023. He was named principal of Hanover (N.H.) High School in 1971, becoming headmaster of Brookline High School in 1980. (Coffey Funeral Home, Tarrytown, N.Y.)
Susan R. Ratnoff, 71, of Exeter, died Nov. 5, 2023. She taught special education in the Concord school system, becoming an assistant principal. She became principal of Exeter High School and later worked as a consultant for the N.H. Department of Education. (Brewitt Funeral Home)
David Campbell Montgomery, 87, of Hanover, died Dec. 12, 2023. He received a Ph.D. in physics from Princeton University in 1959 and was on the physics faculties at the University of Maryland, the University of Iowa, the College of William and Mary, and Dartmouth College. He was an expert in the field of plasma physics. (Knight Funeral Home & Crematory)
JOURNALISTS
Charles Michael Pride, 76, of Palm Harbor, Fla., and Concord, better known as Mike Pride, editor emeritus of the Concord Monitor, died April 24, 2023. He worked at the Concord Monitor for more than 30 years. He won a Nieman Fellowship at Harvard in 1984, the National Press Association’s Editor of the Year award in 1986 and a Yankee Quill award for contributions to New England Journalism in 1997. (Legacy.com)
Bob Harris, 85, of Goffstown, died May 6, 2023. A U.S. Navy veteran, he was a free-lance writer for several New Hampshire newspapers under the byline of “Woods & Waters” and “Fish Tales.” He was a member of the New England Outdoor Writers Association. (French & Rising Funeral Home)
Meghan Margaret Pierce, 50, of Peterborough, died July 7, 2023. She was co-founder of the hyper-local news website, the Monadnock Beat, covering the goings-on of the Monadnock Region. (MonadnockBeat.org)
Jeffrey H. Brodsky, 49, of Manchester, died July 26, 2023. A journalist, he interviewed many national and world leaders, top journalists and celebrities for documentaries and articles he wrote, and his work was published in several national publications. (Legacy.com)
Patricia (Hunt) Perro, 92, of Berwick, Maine, and formerly of Somersworth, died July 21, 2023. She worked for the Somersworth Free Press and was editor from 1970 until 1975 before working at the York County Coast Star. She was general manager and executive editor of the Rumford Falls Times, retiring in 1995. (Armstrong-Charron Funeral Home)
Barry Joseph Palmer, 83, of Nashua, died Sept. 21, 2023. He was a newsman for more than 35 years, starting with the Nashua Telegraph, then WSMN radio and its publication The Broadcaster, and finally the New Hampshire Union Leader. He was twice elected commander of Nashua’s Post 483, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and twice elected commander of Post 3, American Legion. He served two terms as a state representative. (Zis-Sweeney and St. Laurent Funeral Home)
Ruth Naomi Green Rollins, 95, of Cornish, died Oct. 18, 2023. She was a contributing writer for the Eagle Times newspaper from 1962-2004 covering local events, town and district meetings and many events. (Stringer Funeral Home)
Richard B. Pinney, 85, of Greenland, died Nov. 4, 2023. He was best known as the author of “Dick Pinney’s Guide Lines,” a column on outdoor sports that he wrote for many years for the New Hampshire Union Leader. He was a N.H. Fish and Game conservation officer for many years and served as a N.H. Fish and Game commissioner. (J. Verne Wood Funeral Home – Buckminster Chapel)
Katherine “Katy” Burns, 82, of Bow, died Nov. 22, 2023. She was a columnist for the Concord Monitor for more than 20 years and won seven N.H. Press Association awards, including three “Columnist of the Year” awards. (Legacy.com)
MEDIA/MUSICIANS/ARTISTS
David B. Tibbetts, 85, of New London, a renowned watercolor artist, passionate fly-fisherman, poet, and children’s book author, died March 12, 2023. He published four books: “Tight Lines,” a 128-page collection of his watercolors; “A Journey on the End of a Fly Rod,” “What Use is a Moose?” and “A Bear With No Hair,” the latter two for children. His paintings hang in the American Museum of Fly Fishing, Rangeley Region Heritage Trust and the Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
David N. Rasmussen, 82, of Exeter, died July 12, 2023. He was best known as the leader of the Dave Rasmussen Jazz Orchestra as well as the Sax Factory, playing venues throughout southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts. He also released several albums throughout his music career. (Kent & Pelczar Funeral Home & Crematory)
Joan A. Grapes, 90, of New Hampton, died Aug. 18, 2023. She wrote or co-wrote more than a dozen books about banking and finance, as well as a cookbook, under the name Joan German-Grapes. She also co-wrote a monthly newsletter, the Bank Teller’s Report, for more than 20 years. She was a founding member of the Berkshire Poet’s Workshop. (Ross Funeral Home)
Briggs H. Bunker, 92, of North Conway, died Sept. 9, 2023. He was perhaps best known in the Mount Washington Valley as the morning weatherman who gave the daily weather report on the local radio station for 40-plus years, with his show always ending with a daily weather rating between 0 and 50 cents. Anyone in the valley knew that a beautiful day with blue skies was a “50-Centah!” (Furber and White Funeral Home)
Nancy Dewar, 67, of Hampton, died Sept. 16, 2023. A writer, advertising professional and entrepreneur, she combined her talents with her extraordinary love for dogs and in 2018 launched Seacoast Bark Magazine, as owner and publisher. Nancy filled her lifestyle magazine for animal lovers with uplifting and heartwarming stories about dogs and their owners. (Stockbridge Funeral Home)
BUSINESS PEOPLE
William Dube, 86, the owner of Bill Dube Ford and Bill Dube Toyota in Dover, died Feb. 5, 2023. (Tasker Funeral Home)
Charles Denis Capistran, 60, of Manchester, died Feb. 5, 2023. He was the third-generation owner of Julien Richard Oil Co. for nearly 47 years. (J.N. Boufford & Sons Funeral Home)
Alan P. Ritchie, 69, of Newbury, died Feb. 26, 2023. He was assistant ski school director at King Ridge Ski Area, then ski school director, and then director of marketing and ski services. He was a member of the Mount Sunapee snowmaking operations team and owner and director of The Ski School at Mount Sunapee. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
Robert J. Nadeau, 61, of Boscawen, died April 16, 2023. He was president and CEO of Members First Credit Union. (Waters Funeral Home)
Scott Michael Reed, 57, of Sunapee, died May 1, 2023. He and his wife Jennifer owned the Inn at Pleasant Lake in New London. In 2020, they purchased the New London Inn. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Service)
Guenter Karl Mathoni, 92, formerly of Nashua, died April 28, 2023. He opened Gateway Motor Company in Nashua in 1962, later adding the Mazda franchise. (Michaud Funeral Home & Crematory)
Marguerite Vallone, 99, of Epping, died May 27, 2023. She managed her father’s store, Fecteau’s in Epping. In 1972, she and her husband bought the store and operated it as Fecteau’s Country Store for 32 years before closing in 2004. (Brewitt Funeral Home)
Frank O. Buhl, 91, of Manchester, died Oct. 3, 2023. He was the president and CEO of First NH Bank for many years. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)
John B. Howe, 78, of Manchester, died Oct. 9, 2023. He was president and owner of City Fuel Co., starting there as general manager in 1970, purchasing the business in 1973. (Rivet Funeral Home)
Ronald R. Therrien, 85, of Bedford, diedOct. 1, 2023. He owned and operated 36 women’s clothing stores, including Lady Pauline’s and Smartlook, all over the Northeast. (Lambert Funeral Home)
Mark Andler Fenske, 66, of Brookline and Hopkinton, died Nov. 3, 2023. He was a founding partner of T-Bones Restaurant in Salem and helped grow the partnership into Great New Hampshire Restaurants, expanding to nine locations (T-Bones, Cactus Jack’s, and Copper Door). (Legacy.com)
John Fremont Weeks Jr., 91, of Laconia, died Dec. 7, 2023. His father started Weeks Dairy in Laconia, and he and his brother grew the business into one of New Hampshire’s most recognized home-grown companies.
Jonathan Huntington, 95, of Loudon, died Dec. 8, 2023. He owned Pleasant View Gardens in Loudon and Pembroke, and with the help of his two sons, grew it into a multinational business. (Bennett Funeral Home)