College news
• Emma Harris of Brattleboro has enrolled as a member of the Class of 2019 at Colby-Sawyer College in New London, N.H. Harris is a sociology major.
• Samuel Porter of Putney has enrolled at Champlain College in Burlington for the fall 2015 semester. He is a first-year student studying game programming.
• William Culver of Grafton and Carson Fillion of West Dover are enrolled as members of the Class of 2019 at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y.
Transitions
• Stevens & Associates of Brattleboro welcomes Nathaniel Gosselin to their team as an engineering intern. Gosselin has received B.S. degrees in environmental engineering and natural resources: forestry from the University of Vermont. His studies focused on water and wastewater system design through an approach integrating subsurface hydrology, geotechnical principles, and ecosystem management. Gosselin is working on erosion control inspections and underground utility line construction review, as well as construction phase permit compliance for the development of a ground-mounted solar photovoltaic system.
Obituaries
• Dorothy E. (Gross) Alberti, 90, of Londonderry. Died Sept. 7 under the care of Hospice in Branford, Conn. Wife of Paul G. Alberti for 69 years. Mother of Paula Ciancola of Branford, Janet Bernzott of West Islip, N.Y., Kenneth Alberti of Londonderry, Peter Alberti of South Londonderry, and Richard of East Islip. Also survived by 15 grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren, one great-great-grandchild and many nieces and nephews. She was born in Bronx, N.Y., as an only child to the late Frank L. and Evelyn S. Gross. She attended public schools in the New York City school system and then Wagner College in Staten Island, N.Y., where she graduated with a nursing degree in 1946. She continued with her education at St. Joseph's College earning a bachelor's degree, specializing in hospice nursing. She met her husband-to-be at Wagner, and they married in 1946. Their life together included various periods of time in Long Branch, N.J. Rochester and Buffalo, N.Y., Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, Milford, Conn, White Plains and Babylon, N.Y., Londonderry, and Branford. All the people she connected with in all those places were affected by her vitality for life and motivation to keep positive. Her love of life was instrumental in her work for the church in all the places she lived and served. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Cremation services are being handled by New Haven (Conn.) Funeral Services. Memorial services are being planned in both Londonderry and Babylon, N.Y. Donations to The Connecticut Hospice Inc. at 100 Double Beach Road, Branford, CT 06405.
• Kenneth D. “Ken” Carpenter, 90, of Townshend. Died Sept. 3 at Valley Cares in Townshend after a short illness. Husband of the late Gertrude “Mickie” Malloch for 64 years. Father of Judy Carpenter of West Dummerston. Brother of Leonard Carpenter of Burlington and his late siblings Paul, Richard, Bernice, and Gertrude. Born in Greenfield, Mass., the son of the late Lawrence D. Carpenter and Ruth (Plumb) Carpenter, he was raised in Greenfield and attended Greenfield High School and Amherst College. A veteran of World War II, he was drafted into the Army at the age of 18, and served honorably in Company F of the 397th Infantry Regiment in France. He received an honorable discharge from active service in November 1945. He was a valued employee of Fireman's Fund Insurance Company for many years, retiring in 1988. The Carpenters lived in Syracuse, N.Y., and then Whippany, NJ, before settling in Lutherville, Md., for 18 years. There they enjoyed many years of sailing on the Chesapeake Bay; from there they moved to Houston, Texas, and stayed for 30 years. They were members of the Oaks Presbyterian Church and had many wonderful friends. They also enjoyed many years of square dancing, developing strong friendships with their fellow dancers. After the death of his wife in 2010, he moved to Valley Cares, where he was a friend of residents and staff. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A graveside memorial service will be held at Leyden (Mass.) Cemetery at a later date. Donations to Valley Cares, Inc., P.O. Box 341, Townshend, VT 05353. Arrangements are in the care of Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home of Brattleboro.
• Norman Louis “Stormin' Norman” Darrah, 78, of Westminster. Died Sept. 5 at his home with his family. Husband of Lillian (Webster) Darrah for nearly 51 years. Father of Donna and her husband, Paul Thomas, of Westminster. Brother of Carlene Star of Deland, Fla., and the late Beverley Roscoe, William Darrah Jr., and David Darrah Sr. Also survived by three grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Born in Burlington, the son of the late William and Dorthy (Bailey) Darrah of Morrisville, he worked as a truck driver for the Bazin Farm, Bob McQuaid, Tewksbury Trucking, Arthur Whitcomb, and FW Whitcomb for many years. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A graveside service was held Sept. 12 in the New Westminster Cemetery. Arrangements were handled by Fenton & Hennessey Funeral Home of Bellows Falls.
• Valerie Christine George, 58, of Brattleboro. Died Sept. 7 as the result of injuries she sustained in a motorcycle accident in Wilmington. Born in Arlington, Va., the daughter of Raymond and JoAnn (Green) Maynard, she was raised and educated in Agawam, Mass., and was a graduate of Agawam High School, Class of 1974. She went on to attend the University of Massachusetts School of Nursing where she received her R.N. degree. She later earned her Master's degree in nursing education in 2008 from Drexel University in Philadelphia. At the time of her death, she was a nursing instructor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She was also employed as a nurse educator at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in White River Junction. She was an active volunteer with the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont and was also active with the Windham County Chapter of the American Red Cross. She loved spending time with her family, her grandchildren and her grandpuppies. She also enjoyed quilting, baking, hiking, sailing, and relaxing at the beach. She was married to Edwin Sauter of Utica, N.Y., and had two children, Edwin J. Sauter II of Brattleboro, and Jeremy J. Sauter of Hinsdale, N.H. She remarried in 1989, to Phillip George of Brattleboro, and had one child, Andrew J. George of Brattleboro. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A memorial service was held Sept. 15 at Naulakha (Rudyard Kipling House) in Dummerston. Donations to Children's Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock (CHaD), Hitchcock Way, Lebanon, NH or the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont, 15 Grove St, Brattleboro, VT 05302. Arrangements were handled by Atamaniuk Funeral Home of Brattleboro.
• David Andrew Hepburn, 59, of San Francisco. Died April 3, 2015, from injuries sustained in an accident. Born in Cambridge, Mass., the son of Catherine Brooke Hepburn and Leo Jerome Hoar, Jr., he grew up in Atlanta, where he attended local schools, then graduated from Woodstock Union (Vt.) High School in 1975. After attending New England College in Henniker, N.H., he began his life of music and travel. He worked for more than 40 years at various jobs in construction, painting, and restaurant work. He was an accomplished musician and excelled at playing the drums. He loved to travel and had been to Europe several times and lived in many of the major U.S. cities, his favorite being San Francisco. Besides his parents, he is survived by his sister, Judy Hepburn Tietz of Townshend, nieces Michaela and Caroline Tietz, and many aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A graveside ceremony was held on Sept. 12 at Oakwood Cemetery in Townshend. Donations to the Leland & Gray High School Music Program, 2042 VT Rte 30, Townshend, VT 05353
• Jean Crowell “Curly” Pett, 89, formerly of Brattleboro. Died Aug. 20 in Pawleys Island, S.C. Wife of the late Dennis Pett for 57 years. Mother of Kathleen Pett of Rutland, Judith Pett of Union, Ky., Joel Pett of Lexington, Ky., and James Pett of Pawleys Island. Sister of the late Judith Patterson. Also survived by five grandchildren. Born in Woburn, Mass., she grew up on a Chelsea, Vt., farm. She was educated at Iowa State Teachers College, where she played basketball, and at Antioch College in Ohio. She worked briefly for a book publisher in Chicago and later as a librarian in Rochester, N.Y. She married in 1946 and the Petts settled in Bloomington, Ind., where she worked at the Girl Scouts, volunteered at Bloomington Hospital, typed and edited reams of doctoral dissertations, and entertained legions of IU students from all over the world. The Petts were founding members of St. Mark's Methodist Church in 1955 and moved their family to Ibadan, Nigeria, in 1959, returning in 1964. Charming those who knew her with a warm and ready smile, she had a wide variety of interests, among them travel, books, puzzles, cards, knitting, and especially birds. At various times, she skied, swam, played snooker, golf, cribbage, and drove her Austin Healey in a hill climb. Before moving to Pawleys Island, she enjoyed her later years in Brattleboro, where she took up painting and wrote and illustrated a children's book, “A is for Avocet.” MEMORIAL INFORMATION: There will be a memorial service at a later date in Bloomington. Donations may be made to your local animal shelter.
• Hedi Strebi, 89, of Jacksonville. Died Sept. 3. Born and educated in Lucerne, Switzerland, as a young woman, she apprenticed in retail design, creating window displays for fashionable shops. While in Lucerne, Hedi met her future husband, Bob Strebi. The two shared a love of adventure, including kayaking and motorcycling and, in 1952, they married. In 1954, they moved to New Jersey. There, after attending courses in fashion at New York University, she was hired by the purchasing department of the Peter Pan company, then one of the nation's leading manufacturers of women's foundation garments. They were best known for their circular-stitched brassieres, which were marketed with the slogan, “The secret's in the circle.” She quickly rose through the ranks at Peter Pan, becoming an expert in the manufacturing and production process. As the 1960s dawned, she helped the company move away from stitched brassieres to the new molded cup design. After Peter Pan was sold, she accepted a position at Kayser-Roth, another leading lingerie maker, with headquarters on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. There she served as the personal assistant to Ruth Hirschberg, Kayser-Roth's legendary vice president and fashion director. During their years working in New York, the Strebis had discovered Southern Vermont. Both fell in love with the forested hills and pristine waters and, in the late 1950s, they built a vacation home in Halifax. When it was time to retire, they built an addition to their home and moved permanently to Vermont. They both discovered the joys of sailing on Harriman Reservoir and, along with other local sailors, had helped found the Windham Sailing Club, now in its fourth decade. In retirement, she found many outlets for her energy, creativity, and love of design. Sewing, quilting, and furniture upholstery were favorite pastimes, and she was widely admired for her beautiful quilts and handbags. She was also a celebrated cook and, along with Bob, loved to entertain friends with authentic Swiss fondue. She even found time to learn how to play golf. But most of all, Hedi loved to be on the water. She spent countless hours sailing her Sunfish on Lake Whitingham – even winning races. In her later years, she became indispensable to the Windham Sailing Club as treasurer and in planning and organizing the club's social activities. Several years ago, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. But to the end, she always found a way to smile. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A memorial service was held Sept. 11 at Jacksonville Community Church. The Windham Sailing Club will host an additional remembrance at Lake Whitingham in October. Donations to the Jacksonville Community Church. Covey, Allen & Shea Funeral Home in Wilmington is assisting with arrangements.
• Leona Mae (Jillson) Wheelock, 80, of Hinsdale, N.H. Died Aug. 27 after a brief illness. Wife of the late Winston Wheelock for 59 years. Mother of Gary Wheelock and her daughter-in-law, Karen, of Colchester; and Marcia (Wheelock) Rajala and her son-in-law, Richard, of Kennebunk, Maine. Also survived by two granddaughters. Born in Hanover, N.H., she was the daughter of the late Charles and Louise (Abbott) Jillson. She attended Woodstock (Vt.) High School, and loved growing up in nearby Taftsville and Bridgewater. On Dec. 20, 1952, she and Mr. Wheelock were married in Cavendish. They made a home and raised their family on Jackson Hill Road in Chesterfield, N.H., and lived there for almost 50 years before moving to a new home in Hinsdale in 2005. She had a long career as a nurse's aide at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and later at Maplewood Nursing Home in Westmoreland, N.H. She was an animal lover and the family always had dogs of every variety as companions, from beagles to Airedales to Yorkshire Terriers, and all manner of lovable mutts. She was a loving wife, mother and grandmother. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: There were no visiting hours and the immediate family held a private memorial service to honor her wishes. Donations to Windham County Humane Society, P.O. Box 397, Brattleboro, VT 05302 or to Home Health Care and Community Services, Inc., P.O. Box 564, Keene, NH 03431. Arrangements were handled by Atamaniuk Funeral Home.