J. ‘Jack’ Champeau,

Air Force vet

THE VILLAGES, Fla. — John A. Champeau, 78, of Kananwood Terrace, died July 9, 2014, after a brief illness. Born July 10, 1935, in Putnam, he was the son of the late John A. and Harriet (Whitman) Champeau. 

Mr. Champeau attended Putnam High School and was a standout basketball player and president of the National Honor Society, graduating with high honors.  Following his graduation from Putnam in 1953, he enlisted with the U.S. Air Force where he was a Fusing Systems Specialist for the 30th Supply Squadron in the Nuclear Weapons Program, until he was honorably discharged in 1957. 

After serving in the Air Force, John attended Ellis Technical School where he earned a diploma in Mechanical Design upon graduating in 1960.  He would go on to have a long and varied career in the aerospace industry at General Dynamics, IBM, Raytheon and Kaiser.  He spent time living in Alabama, California, and Texas before settling down in Florida and New England during his retirement years, including time in his hometown of Putnam. He had a passion for New England sports, following the Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots as well as the UConn basketball teams, and was an avid Dodgers fan.  He enjoyed listening to jazz, watching old movies and cooking.

He leaves one brother, Phillip Champeau of Clinton, Tenn.; two sisters, Lucille Caron of Dayville and Linda King of Pomfret; nine nephews, Paul J. Champeau of Glendale, Ariz., John W. Champeau of Ellington, Michael J. Champeau of Great Falls, Mont.,  David P. Champeau of Hudson, Mass.,  Ernest (Skip) Berube of Lakeworth, Fla., Tim Berube of Spring City, Tenn., Charles (Chuck) Berube of Danielson, Arthur (Butch) Caron Jr. of Dayville, and Phillip Champeau Jr.; and six nieces, Lisa Riendeau (Lefevre) of Keystone Heights, Fla., Kathleen Ayers of Ashford, Cheryl Young of Dayville, Cindy James of Dayville, Darleene Champeau of Clovis, Calif., and Carrie Allain of Clayton, N.C..  He was predeceased by his brother Paul ‘Rocky’ Champeau and his sister Doris (Dot) Lefevre. 

A graveside service with military honors will be held at noon Oct. 3 at the Grove Street Cemetery in Putnam, with a reception to follow at the Putnam Elks Club, Edmond Street. Donations: American Heart Association, 5 Brookside Drive, Wallingford, CT 06492. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Sr. G. Desilets, DHS

PUTNAM — Sr. Gilberte Désilets, DHS, 102, a member of the Daughters of the Holy Spirit, died Sept. 28, 2014, at the Holy Spirit Provincial House where she had been in retirement since 2001.

Sr. Gilberte was born on Feb. 22, 1912, at St. Grégoire, P.Q. Canada, the daughter of the late Eric and Blanche (Hébert) Désilets.  She entered religious life in 1928 and made her religious profession on Aug. 25, 1931, at the Motherhouse in St. Brieuc, France.  She was then known as Sr. Cecilia.

She began her teaching career at St. Mary School, Jewett City and then at Immaculate Conception School, Fitchburg, Mass.; Holy Family School, Fairfield, and Assumption School, Chicopee, Mass.  In 1980 she retired from teaching and served in various capacities as dietician, domestic services at St. Joseph Guest House in New Haven and she did private tutoring at St. John School, Plainfield, and St. Mary School, Jewett City.

She leaves two sisters, Fernande Desilets of Leominster, Mass., and Jacqueline Mills of Brockton, Mass.; nieces and nephews, grand nieces and grand nephews.

A Mass of Christian Burial was Sept. 30 at the Provincial House chapel with burial at St. Mary Cemetery, Putnam. Donations; Daughters of the Holy Spirit Retirement Fund, 72 Church St., Putnam, CT 06260.  Gilman and Valade Funeral Homes.

 

Gretalyn I. Lund Elmen

WOODSTOCK — Gretalyn Iris Lund Elmen, 98, died Sept. 9, 2014.

She was born Jan. 14, 1916, in Beverly, Mass., to the Rev. Anders Gottfrid and Mrs. Iris Lindblad Lund. 

Her elementary schooling was in Cranston, R.I., New York City, and Worcester, Mass. Gretalyn was presented with an honorary prize upon her graduation from South High School in Worcester. She received a B.Ed. from Worcester State Teachers College (now Worcester State University) and did graduate work at Clark University, Worcester. She taught school over a span of 60 years, from 1937 to 1997, in Shrewsbury and Lexington, Mass., and in Evanston and Kenilworth, Ill. 

In her “retirement years,” she tutored at Rectory School, Pomfret, for 19 years. Her family albums are filled with photographs of her students. Gretalyn married the Rev. Dr. Paul Elmen in 1942. They lived in Evanston for more than 30 years as Paul was a professor of English Literature at Northwestern University and of Moral Theology at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary. He died in 1999. 

Gretalyn and Paul, children of Swedish immigrants, were fluent in Swedish, and Gretalyn, proud of her Scandinavian heritage, translated several published books from Swedish to English. They travelled frequently, visiting across Europe from Iceland to Turkey with extended stays in Sweden and Great Britain. Gretalyn a lover of learning, enjoyed the theater, reading and book discussions, pristine grammar, crossword puzzles, motherhood, and teaching. She was interested in people, loved to socialize, and would strike up a conversation with anyone, anywhere, anytime. She was gracious, witty, well-versed, and vibrant. 

She leaves her daughter, Elisabeth Elmen Levesque (Joffre); her son, John Elmen (Robin Neely) of Cumberland Foreside, Maine; and her grandson, Paul Joffre Levesque and his fiancée, Maureen Holowinski, of Northbrook, Ill. Two brothers, Rev. Anders Godfrey Lund Jr. and Rev. Clayton R. Lund, predeceased her. 

A Celebration of Life Service will be at 11 a.m. Oct. 18 at Christ Memorial Church, Rt. 169, Pomfret, with private interment in Christ Church Cemetery. Donations: Christ Church, Box 21, Pomfret, CT 06258; or Rectory School, P.O. Box 68, Pomfret, CT 06258. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Jeannette Millette

PUTNAM — Jeannette Millette, 90, of Putnam, died peacefully Sept. 21, 2014, at Pierce Memorial Baptist Nursing Home.

She was employed by Day Kimball Hospital for 25 years.  She loved shopping and cooking. A plaque in her kitchen said it all, “No matter where I serve my guests, they always like my kitchen best!”

She was preceded in death by her husband of almost 50 years, Oclede Joseph Millette (Al Millette) and daughter Celeste Marie Millette. 

She was the daughter of the late Noe and Diana DesJardin.

She was predeceased by six brothers John, Lucien, Albert, Raymond, Roger, Henry; and one sister, Helen Dauphinas.

She leaves her sister Yvette Keonnicke (Frank) of Norwich; children: Carol Mercier of Putnam, Allen Millette of Eastport, Maine, Claudia Millette of Manchester, Priscilla Holbrook (Peter) of Scottsdale, Ariz., Dr. Beverly McGuire (Troy) of Jacksonville, Fla., and David Millette (Cindy) of Melbourne; eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. 

Burial and a celebration of her life is planned for Spring of 2015. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Marsha A. Reed

PUTNAM — Marsha A. Reed, 66, of Putnam, died Sept. 28, 2014, at Day Kimball Hospital. The wife of Kevin Reed, they were married in 1985. She was born Sept. 12, 1948, in Worcester, daughter of the late Marshall and Alice (Donahue) Carter. 

She was a very talented and creative women. She loved to garden, enjoyed painting and all kinds of crafts. 

She leaves her husband Kevin; two sons, Michael Morin of Webster, Zachary Reed of Putnam; brothers John Carter (Linda) Linda of Dudley, Paul Carter of Oxford, Mass.; grandchildren, Gage and Rachel Morin. 

Calling hours are from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 1 at Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., with the funeral service at 11 a.m. Oct. 2 at the funeral home. Donations: Hospice of NE CT, PO Box 632, Putnam, CT 06260. 

 

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