College news
• The following local students were recognized for academic achievement at Vermont Technical College for the spring 2015 semester: Emily K, Houghton of Brattleboro, Heather L. Janos of Dummerston, Jeffrey L. Harlow and Donna M. Ianetta of Putney, Caleb Bristol of Townshend, Mary Emery of Vernon, Stacy A. Chickering of West Chesterfield, N.H., Lindsay B. Colompos of West Marlboro, Ian Ingram of Westmoreland, N.H., and August Q, Conmy and Thomas J. Manton Jr. of Wilmington were all named to the Dean's List. Zachary Blanchard of Bellows Falls was named to the President's List.
Obituaries
• Manley “Mickey” Blaisdell, 73, of Bellows Falls. Died July 15 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. Husband of Linda Auclair Blaisdell. Father of Loren C. Blaisdell of Alstead, N.H., and Catherine Murray of Marlboro, N.H. Brother of Tom Blaisdell of Bethel, Rick Blaisdell of Chester, John Blaisdell of Jacksonville, Fla., Cathy Powers of Northfield, Linda LaRose of Barre, Susie Oathout of New York, and Donna Little of Troy, N.Y. Born in Braintree, the son of Manley and Harriett (Nadeau) Blaisdell, he worked for the town of Rockingham, Unified Data, Sensor Security, and Deter Security. Memorial information: A graveside service will be held in the Rockingham Meeting House Cemetery at the convenience of the family. Arrangements are by Fenton & Hennessey Funeral Home in Bellows Falls.
• Annette Dockum, 92, of Rockingham. Died July 23. Wife of the late Horace Dockum. Mother of Carl Dockum of Keene, N.H., and John Dockum of Parish, N.Y. Born in Burke, N.Y., the daughter of the late Frank and Mina (Travisee) Schryer, she attended schools in northern New York and went to work at the A&P, First Vermont Bank, Holmes Transportation, and The Shopper, all in the Bellows Falls area. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Services will be private, at the convenience of the family. Donations may be made to the American Heart Association, P.O. Box 485, Williston, VT 05495.
• John T. “Tom” Engle, 75, of Surry, Maine. Died July 8 in his home in Surry, Maine, after a three year battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Cindy; three children, Stephen, Brooks, and Rebecca; his daughter-in-law, Emma Ansara, his three grandsons, Cyrus, Ben, and Treat; his sisters, Louise Dove and Susan Engle, and his brother-in-law, Bob Eisenman. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: There will be a celebration of life in the fall.
• Antoinette “Toni” Marie Franke, 97, formerly of Brattleboro. Died July 6 in Greenfield, Mass. Wife of the John R. Franke Jr. for 67 years. Mother of Richard C. Franke and his partner, Francis Phinney, of New Brunswick, Canada; JoAnn Overfield and her husband, Dale, of Edgewood, Wash., and Beverly Stewart and her husband, Richard of Guilford. Born in the Bronx, N.Y., daughter of the late Samuel Bumbolow and Palma (Lauro) Michaels, she grew up surrounded by her many Italian relatives. As a child she spent time in Burolo, Italy, with her mother and extended family. She graduated from Evander Childs High School in the Bronx in 1936. She was fortunate to have been able to see Broadway shows, opera and ballet. As an avid Yankees fan, she felt fortunate to have seen Babe Ruth play in Yankee Stadium. She married in 1937, and the Frankes lived in New Jersey, where they purchased and ran a dairy farm in the town of Washington. They worked hard to convert it into a state of the art operation. In the mid 1950s, they sold the farm and moved to suburban New Jersey, and later they retired to Brattleboro to be near family. She was proud of her Italian heritage. She was a wife, mother, and homemaker who enjoyed cooking, needlework, dancing, opera, painting in watercolors, and socializing. She enjoyed gardening and was passionate about feeding and caring for the birds and other wildlife in her yard. She loved to travel, one of her highlights being an 80th birthday trip to Paris on the supersonic Concorde. She was a caring and giving person who gave generously to organizations and causes that were important to her. She lived a happy and full life, and all who knew her will miss her stories and spirited conversation. Memorial information: A funeral service was held July 25 at Ker Westerlund Funeral Home in Brattleboro, with burial in Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery. Donations to Windham Child Care Association, 130 Birge St., Brattleboro, VT 05301 or Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 17 Belmont Ave. Brattleboro, VT 05301.
• Marjorie Ruth Harding, 94, of West Brattleboro. Died June 6 at Thompson House, where she had been a resident. Former wife of James Edward Lyons. Wife of the late Clarence Harding for 15 years. She was born at home on Frost Street in Brattleboro, the daughter of the late Frank and Ruth (Fish) Smith. She was raised and educated in Brattleboro and was a graduate of Brattleboro High School, Class of 1938. She went on to attend Northampton Commercial College, graduating in 1940, and later graduated from the Hartford (Conn.)Airline Personnel School. She was employed as an executive secretary for 16 years at the former Vermont National Bank, working as secretary to the Senior Vice President. Previously, she worked for Frank Filbert in the traffic office at the former Crosby Milling Company, then located on Vernon Road. Prior to joining Crosby Milling, she was employed as an executive secretary in the law offices of Attorney Osmer Fitts. In her earlier years, she had worked at the Holstein-Frisian Association. She was a lifelong member of the Centre Congregational Church and, for many years, was very involved in church activities that included teaching Sunday school, served as church librarian for 20 years, and served on the Centre Church Building and Grounds Committee. For many years, she was an active member of the former Dennis Rebekah Lodge #1 in Brattleboro. She was active for 35 years with the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, where she served as secretary of the board, served on the finance committee, worked in the human resource department, and volunteered in the hospital mailroom and personnel file department. She was a former board member of the Holton Home, served as secretary, and was on the visiting committee. She was also involved with the former Brattleboro Little Theater since its inception and served as president of the group for several terms. The Little Theater was established by the late Mr. & Mrs. Charles Tazells and was located on Putney Road in the coach house behind the former Stone Fence Inn. Of her pastimes and interests, she enjoyed golf, reading and travel. One of her favorite vacation destinations was Bermuda, which she visited nine times. Survivors include a stepdaughter, Joyce Scott of Dummerston, and A cousin, Anna Hoadley of Monticello, Fla. She was predeceased by two brothers, Frank Orvis Smith and Merle Fish Smith, and a stepdaughter, Margaret Johndrow. Memorial information: There are no funeral services scheduled. Donations to Holton Home, 158 Western Ave., Brattleboro, VT 05301.
• Bonnie Lee LaClair, 70, of Brattleboro. Died July 22 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. Sister of Michael Sanderson. Mother of Jody Cole, Dawn Waite and her husband, Zane; Heidi Gleason; Barbara Drew-Rivera and her husband, Milton Rivera; Robert Drew and wife, Bea of CA and and Philip Drew. as well as many grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces and nephews. She is predeceased by six sisters and her parents, Bernard Sanderson and Gertrude Boyce. She had a passion for reading, animals, and crossword puzzles. Shepossessed a zest for life that was amazing to behold. Although she battled four different kinds of cancer, underwent five separate surgeries, radiation, and other treatments and procedures in the last three years, her smile never left her face and her spirit never wavered. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: She requested that there be no services or viewing and that she be remembered for the Queen Bee she was! There will be a gathering for immediate family at a later date to be determined. Donations to the humane society of your choice.
• Richard Leonard Peskin, Ph.D., 81, of Brattleboro. Died July 12 at his home after a long illness. Born in Cambridge, Mass., he earned his B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1956 and his Ph.D. in engineering from Princeton University in 1960. A member of the faculty in the department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering of Rutgers University for 38 years, he made numerous contributions in turbulence, non-linear dynamics and chaos, and was a pioneer in the application of artificial intelligence strategies and parallel computing to symbolic computation and numerical simulation of fluid flows. He retired to Vermont in 1997 and enjoyed regular pursuit of two of his many interests - playing the cello and sledding with a small team of Siberian Huskies. He is survived by his wife, Sandra Walther, daughters, Elisa Morrison and Karen Bauer, stepson, Christopher Walther, and six grandchildren. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Any one wishing to honor his memory may make a contribution to the Brattleboro Music Center.
• Jacob Julius Wunsch, 23, of Vernon. Died July 17 at his home. Born in Brattleboro, the son of Theodore and Kelly (McCandless) Wunsch, he was raised and educated in Vernon and had attended Brattleboro Union High School. He had worked as a counselor for Vernon Recreation Department and previously had been employed at the Putney Road Redemption Center and at Rentals Plus. He was an excellent pool player and was active for several years with the Brattleboro Bowl Billiard Team, competing in many local and regional tournaments. Of his other pastimes and interests, he enjoyed the outdoors, especially snowmobiling. He also was a fan of the New England Patriots. With his parents he had attended Vernon Advent Christian Church. Survivors also include his paternal grandparents, Edward and Edna Wunsch of Hinsdale his grandmother, Betty Chamberlin of Vernon, and several aunts, uncles and cousins that include a special cousin, Hannah Gantt, whom he considered a sister and his best friend. Memorial information: A memorial service was held at Vernon Advent Christian Church, followed by burial in Tyler Cemetery in Vernon, Donations to Rescue Inc. P.O. Box 593, Brattleboro, VT 05302, or to Vernon Advent Christian Church, 4554 Fort Bridgman Road, Vernon, VT 05354. Arrangements were handled by Atamaniuk Funeral Home of Brattleboro.