Milestones

Births

• In Brattleboro (Memorial Hos­pital), Aug. 28, 2013, a daughter, Taylor Lucienne Hescock, to Angela (Kehoe) and Robert Hes­cock of Wardsboro; granddaugh­ter to Lissa and Jim Hescock of Wardsboro, and Cindy and Bob Kehoe of Windham.

• In Keene, N.H., (Cheshire Med­ical Center), Aug. 24, 2013, a son, Bentley Isaiah, to Corrina Kuusela and Jason Williams of Westmin­ster.

• In Burlington (Fletcher Allen Health Care), Aug. 8, 2013, a daughter, Rachel Victoria Mullarkey, to Melissa (Giroux) and Robert Mullarkey of Colch­ester.

Transitions

• Hilltop Montessori School has hired Tamara Mount as its new head of school. Mount succeeds Tonia Wheeler, who stepped down as interim head on July 1. Mount brings 17 years of experience as an educator and manager to Hilltop. Prior to her arrival in Brattleboro, she spent seven years as the lead lower elementary (grades 1–3) teacher at the Cherry Blossom Montessori School in Hillsborough, N.J., where she also worked as a teacher of toddlers. She obtained her Montessori lower elementary teaching credentials in 2008 from the Princeton Center for Teacher Education.

• Aaron Shams Helminski, MD, has joined Brattleboro Memorial Hospital's Department of Hospitalist Medicine. Dr. Helminski attended University of Vermont in Burlington for both his pre-med and doctoral programs. He completed an internship in internal medicine at University of Hawaii in 2011 and returned to UVM/Fletcher Allen to complete his residency in 2013, where he was chief resident. He resides in Putney.

• The Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Community Health Team announced the hiring of Joan Bowman as a Navigator for Vermont's new insurance exchange program. As a trained and certified Vermont Health Connect exchange navigator, Bowman's role is to make sure individuals, families and small businesses in Windham County understand their options and have access to the tools and resources needed to apply for health insurance.

• The Brattleboro Lodge of Elks #1499 recently conducted an initiation ritual and created six new members bringing current membership in the lodge to 718 members. Initiated were Amanda Gilbert, Daniel Todd, William Holbrook, Brian Casey, Stephen Bevis, and Mark Campbell.

Obituaries

• Audrey A. Broschart, 65, of Brattleboro. She was born, raised and educated in Brooklyn, N.Y. She worked for the New York City Board of Education in Brooklyn, She married and moved to Vermont in 1994, residing first in Wardsboro and moving to Brattleboro in 1998 where she lived with her brother, Andrew Broschart. She is survived by two other brothers, Richard and Wilfred. For the past several years, she has been a loyal volunteer at the Loaves & Fishes community kitchen at Centre Congregational Church in Brattleboro. She would arrive early in the morning on Tuesdays and Fridays, set the tables for guests and arrange the sharing table and make coffee available for the guests. Memorial information: A funeral service will be held Thursday, Sept. 26, at 10 a.m., at Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home in Brattleboro.

• Lawrence Richard Fortier, 74, formerly of Brattleboro. Died Sept. 14 at his home in Barefoot Bay, Fla. Husband of Kathleen Fortier for 45 years. Father of Kathleen Reed of Panama City, Fla., Laurie Perkins of Boothbay Har­bor, Maine, Christina Doucette of Dummerston, James Fortier of Sebastian, Fla, and David Fortier of Vernon. Brother of Jo­seph, William, and Nor­man Fortier. Born in Dover, N.H., he worked in the construction industry and was a member of the Local Un­ion 104 and Plumbers and Pipefitters in Chicopee, Mass. He was a resident of and raised his fami­ly in Brattle­boro before re­tiring to Bare­foot Bay 16 years ago. He was a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles of Sebastian, Fla. Memorial information: A memorial service was held Sept. 18 at Seawinds Chapel in Sebastian, Fla.

• Thomas A. Mills, 57, formerly of Bellows Falls. Died Sept. 18. He was the son of Francis and Francese (Durant) Mills. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held Sept. 23 at St. Charles Church in Belllows Falls with burial in Westminster Cemetery. Donations to the Monadnock Humane Society, 101 W. Swanzey Road, Swanzey, NH 03446.

• Anneliese “Anna” Sprague, 30, of Wilmington. Died Sept. 15 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Hanover N.H. Mother of Michaela Sprague. Long-time friend of Brian Mctyre. Sister of Steven and Chad Sprague, and Amber Sibley. Born in Ben­nington, the daughter of Steven Sprague, and Debor­ah Ellison, she was full of life, always wearing a beautiful smile. Her de­sire to make those around her happier will never be forgot­ten. Her proudest moment was when she became a mother on Nov. 25, 2003. She had lived and worked closely with her fa­ther for many years, and was ex­cited to begin operating her own small part of the three-generation family business, having success­fully completed her first few proj­ects. Memorial information: A celebration of her life will take place on Sunday, Sept. 29, from 1 to 4 p.m., at Honora Winery in Halifax. A private family gathering in Maine will take place at a later date.

• Donna Lee Smart, 75, of Brattleboro. Died Sept. 17 at Pine Heights Nursing Home following a period of declining health. Wife of Lincoln F. Smart for 56 years. Mother of Lisa Smart and Lori Sargent and her husband, Ron, all of Brattleboro; Lynda Lawrence and her husband, Peter, of Dummerston; and a son that died in infancy. Sister of the late Arlene Holmquist. Born in Brattle­boro, the daugh­ter of William “Ernie” and Hel­en (Delp) Retz, she graduated from Brattle­boro Union High School, Class of 1956. For several years, she lived in Vincentown, N.J., where she had been employed as a secretary for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. With her family, she later relocat­ed back to Brattleboro in 1967. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revo­lution, Brattleboro Chapter #75 and, with her husband, held mem­bership in the Now & Then Vehi­cle Club. She was a woman of great faith and was a lifelong member of First United Methodist Church in Brattleboro. She enjoyed genealogy, research­ing and taking family history gath­ering trips with her sister Arlene that included visits to her fami­ly's farm in Pennsylvania. She was an avid reader and enjoyed time spent at Brooks Memorial Library. On several occasions, she said that she would love to be locked in the li­brary for a weekend. She also enjoyed attending yard sales and time shared with her family. Memorial information: A graveside service was held Sept. 23 at Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery. Donations to Pine Heights Nursing Home Activi­ties Fund, 187 Oak Grove Ave­., Brattleboro, VT 05301. Arrangements are under the di­rection of the Atamaniuk Funeral Home.

• János Joseph Szappanos, 76, for­merly of Brookline. Died Sept. 8 at his home in Mikóháza, Hungary. Father of Janos Szappanos Jr. of Brook­line, Victor Szappanos of Mikóháza, Dawn Lagace and her husband, Patrick, of Chesterfield, N.H., and Heather Szappanos and her fiancée Jere­miah Packard of Dummerston. Brother of Joseph, George, and Larry Szappanos, and Helen Kisgati, all of Hungary, and the late Steve, Peter, Bela, Andras, and Ma­ria Szappanos. Born in Sátoraljaújhely, Hungary, the son of the late Peter and Ilona (Zmika) Szappanos, he was raised and attended school in Hungary until the age of 18, when he immi­grated to the Unit­ed States. János was sponsored and fostered by the Papzin family of Nor­walk, Conn. He worked to learn the English language and eventually received his high school diploma. Follow­ing high school, he served in the Army. For sever­al years, he worked as a tailor to pay his way through college. He subsequently earned several other degrees in physics and engineering. He earned a P.hD. in Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and went to work for Perkin Elmer, an optical company based in Nor­walk. It was at this time that he met his first wife, Patricia Eckert. The couple built a home and fami­ly together and established an op­tical business after moving to Ver­mont in 1970. The company, Janos Optical, eventually renamed Janos Tech­nology, Inc., was home-based, but quickly expanded into a large corporation growing from one employee to well over 100 working two shifts at its location in Townshend. He was well re­spected in the West River area and regarded as a businessman who was dedicated to his employ­ees as well has his community. He was known for his spirit of kindness and generosity, and was always willing to help the people around him. In conjunc­tion with his steadfast work eth­ic, he was a very humble man. János became an international entrepreneur who never forgot his roots. Due to changes in his person­al life, he eventually sold the company in 2000 and relocated back to his homeland. He met and married Marika Kvancz, and they had one child together. He continued his residence in the United States and Hungary. Memorial information: Fu­neral services and burial took place in Mikohaza. Locally, a me­morial service will be con­ducted Saturday, Oct. 5, at 2 p.m., at American Le­gion Post 5 on Linden Street. A recep­tion will follow the services. Arrangements are under the di­rection of the Atamaniuk Funeral Home.

• Howard B. Vaine Sr., 83, formerly of Putney. Died Sept. 1 at the V.A. Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. Husband of Doris Anne (Kenney) Vaine for nearly 62 years. Father of Howard B. Vaine, Jr. and his wife, Ellen, of Shaftsbury; Paul S. Vaine of Ha­waii; Kenneth A. Vaine of Lake Worth, Fla.; and Mary Beth Miraglia of Stuart, Fla. Born in Putney, the son of the late Gilman F. Vaine Sr. and Evelyn Rose (Phelps) Vaine, he was a graduate of Bellows Falls High School, Class of 1947. He served in the Army during the Korean War with the 19th Infantry Regiment of the 24th Division, 19th Infantry. He was a recipient of the Silver Star, Bronze Star, the Pur­ple Heart, and five major battle rib­bons. A life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, at the time of his death he was a member of Post 2007 in West Palm Beach, Fla. He was a past member of Post 1332 in Bennington and had served as Past Senior Vice Commander there. In earlier years, he was em­ployed as a herdsman on the Hall Farm in North Bennington and later at Globe Union in Ben­nington. The Vaines moved to Florida in 1977. While living in Florida, he was em­ployed as a security guard at the Palm Beach Polo Club. An avid outdoorsman, he en­joyed hunting and fishing. He also enjoyed playing both the banjo and harmonica. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held Sept. 19 at Sa­cred Heart St. Francis de Sales Church in Bennington, with burial in the family lot in Park Lawn Cemetery. Donations to St. Jude Children's Research Hospi­tal, in care of Mahar & Son Funeral Home, 628 Main St., Bennington, VT 05201.