InDepthNH.org scans the websites of New Hampshire funeral homes each week and selects at random some of our friends, relatives and neighbors to feature in this column. The people listed here passed away during the previous weeks and have some public or charitable connection to their community. 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.

Dr. Charles Kimball Crawford, 88, of Peterborough, died May 9, 2026. He was a physicist, former Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, entrepreneur, pilot, and philanthropist. He spent time at Los Alamos and was an electrical engineering and physics professor at MIT in the 1960s. He founded Kimball Physics Inc. (KPI) more than 50 years ago, moving to a barn at the Kimball Heights Farm in Wilton. He was a pioneer in the field of electron physics and held numerous patents. He was an avid aviator who held commercial pilot and instructor licenses for multiple aircraft, owned several planes, and enjoyed training students who wanted to learn to fly. In 2014, he purchased the historic 1850 Wilton Falls Building and provided rent-free homes for the Open Cupboard Food Pantry, the Second Congregational Church’s thrift shop (Second Glances), and the Wilton Main Street Association. In 2023, he gave the building to the Town of Wilton. (Jellison Funeral Home)

Philip Conrad Desmarais, 77, of Webster, died May 30, 2026. He was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, serving as a dentist stationed in Key West, Fla. He completed orthodontic training and established practices in Concord and Littleton. He was a member of the Kiwanis Club and volunteered as a youth basketball coach for more than 11 years. (Waters Funeral Home)

George Albert Gauthier, 79, of Nashua, died May 29, 2026. He had a career in education and coaching at various high schools across southern New Hampshire and northeastern Massachusetts. He taught history, geography, and religious studies at Bishop Guertin High School in Nashua for two decades, also coaching freshman and JV basketball, freshman baseball, and varsity soccer. He coached the soccer team to back-to-back Class L state championships in 1986-87. He also coached soccer at the University of Massachusetts Lowell for the 1993-1996 seasons. (Davis Funeral Home)

Joan Merle Izen, 70, of New Castle and formerly of Bedford, died May 27, 2026. In 1992, she conceived and designed the Preschool Technical Assistance Network (PTAN), a statewide, grant-funded project that promotes quality programs for New Hampshire’s young children and their families. She served as the project director since its inception and supported New Hampshire offices to develop new systems and policies that promote the successful inclusion of all young children in their early care and education settings. For the past five years, she served as the facilitator of the state leadership team and through a funded project supported the development of the state’s first master cadre of coaches and trainers. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)

John C. LaRochelle, 80, of Manchester, died May 31, 2026. He worked 27 years for the Manchester Fire Department, retiring at the rank of captain. (Lambert Funeral Home & Crematory)

Howard William Phelps, 83, of Gilford, died May 29, 2026. He was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, serving as a medical corpsman. He operated Freddie’s BP, a gas station and convenience store on Route 125 in Epping, for more than 30 years. He sold the business in 1999 and became a licensed nursing assistant at the Rockingham County Nursing Home. He appeared in several productions of the Leddy Center in Epping. (Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home)

Peter L. Powers Sr., 91, of Manchester, died May 27, 2026. He was a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army and served as an intelligence officer in Germany. He had a long career with Esso (now Exxon-Mobil) and retired at age 56. He and his wife Connie sold their house in Connecticut and built their dream retirement house in Hopkinton. He was a charter member of the Hopkinton Rotary Club and was district governor in 2003. He sang with the choir at the First Congregational Church and a regional men’s choir, the Barnstormers. (Legacy.com)

Dana Gordon Ramspott, 62, of Sunapee, died June 2, 2026. He served 41 years on the Sunapee Fire Department, in every position in the department, ultimately becoming assistant chief. He served on a committee to preserve the Livery Building and for many years tended the clock tower atop the Livery Building. He served on the building committee for the Safety Services Building, Sunapee’s 250th birthday committee and as a lifetime member of the Sunapee Historical Society. He was a member of King Solomon Lodge 14 in Elkins. (Chadwick Funeral and Cremation Services)

Mary Lyons Baldwin Scott of Hanover died May 27, 2026. She played piano and performed concerts in Hanover and in Lynchburg, attending Menahem Pressler’s summer workshops, and playing in one of his master classes. She coordinated the Kendal retirement community’s Webster Society concert series. She worked as a systems engineer in the early ‘60s for IBM in New York. She turned her business and fashion skills to Carlisle, a high-end women’s clothing line, and was the top small-town seller in the country, then she became a regional manager. (Rand-Wilson Funeral Home)

Dr. Arthur William Simington, 84, of Keene, died May 26, 2026. He served two years in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps in Washington, D.C., where he completed his service as a lieutenant commander. He was a pediatrician in Keene for 35 years, practicing at the Keene Clinic and Dartmouth-Hitchcock. He once co-hosted a radio talk show, was school physician for both Keene and Monadnock school districts, and was an active member in the New Hampshire Pediatric Society. He served 12 years on the American Board of Pediatrics and was adjunct associate professor of pediatrics for the Dartmouth Medical School. He held leadership positions in the Keene Clinic, Cheshire Medical Staff, United Church of Christ, and Historical Society of Cheshire County. He was a founding member of the Keene Chorale and the Chamber Singers of Keene and sang with the United Church of Christ choir for more than 40 years. (DiLuzio Foley and Fletcher Funeral Homes)

Trudy Tilton, 75, of Salem, died May 30, 2026. She served as a state representative and was a hairdresser. She was a special officer for the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Department, riding her motorcycle with blue lights flashing in parades. She volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club. (Douglas & Johnson Funeral Home)

James W. Varnum, 85, of Etna, died May 26, 2026. He was president of Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital in 1978 and led Dartmouth-Hitchcok Medical Center through the rapid changes to health care in the 1990s and 2000s until his retirement in 2006. He was chief administrator of the University of Washington Hospital in Seattle and superintendent of the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. In retirement, he served on nonprofit boards including VINS, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, New Hampshire Public Radio, and Grafton County Senior Citizens Council. (Rand-Wilson Funeral Home)

Joan Stanley Wood, 88, of Manchester and long-time resident of Bedford, died May 27, 2026. She was a dietitian and served as president of the Bedford Newcomer’s Club. She was a lifetime member of the Bedford Woman’s Club. She sold real estate in southern New Hampshire and was director of social services for the Salvation Army in Manchester. She worked at UNH Cooperative Extension in Goffstown. She volunteered as a Granite State Ambassador and drove cancer patients to medical appointments. (Legacy.com)

WORDS OF WISDOM: “The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief. But the pain of grief is only a shadow when compared with the pain of never risking love.” – Hillary Stanton Zunin, a California school teacher who with her husband wrote “The Art of Condolence.” She died in 2021.