Marguerite Seaton,

WWII vet

DAYVILLE — Marguerite Parks Seaton died Jan. 17, 2015. Mrs. Seaton was born on Nov. 17, 1915, in Maysville, Ga., to Mamie Gillespie Parks and Ralph Parks. 

She grew up in Homer, Ga., attending local schools. Prior to WWII, she worked as a secretary in Columbia, S.C. In February, 1944 she enlisted in the Marine Corps, and served at Miramar Naval Air Station in California. After being honorably discharged in 1946, she attended Columbia University, earning a bachelor’s degree in English literature. 

She married Thomas J. Seaton in December, 1952. In 1954 she accompanied her husband to England, where he served with the U.S. Department of Defense School system until 1985. In 1990 they returned to the U.S., living in Thompson, and later in Woodstock. Mrs. Seaton was a superb cook, a gifted piano player, and a lover of grand opera. She was an avid reader, and had a keen interest in English literature and history. She also wrote humorous and entertaining letters, which were enjoyed by her whole family, and many of her friends. 

She leaves her daughter Jean Seaton Keleher of Kensington, Md.; her sons, Thomas J. Seaton III of Waldorf, Md., and Edward A. Seaton of Pomfret Center; five grandchildren, Elena and Jeffrey Seaton, and Christopher, Alexander, and Claire Keleher; her sister, Lynn Lewallen of Homer. She was predeceased by her husband Thomas who died in January, 2014. 

A Memorial Service will be held at a later date. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Leo J. Page,

WWII vet

DANIELSON — Leo J. Page, 86, of Danielson, died Jan. 27, 2015, at Matulaitis Nursing Home in Putnam, where he spent the last month of his life battling the end stages of Alzheimer’s disease. He was the husband of Theresa (Phaneuf) Page. 

He was born Aug. 19, 1928, in Cumberland, R.I., son of Leo and Jeannette (Bailey) Page. He was an oil service driver and worked in construction for many years until he retired in 1996. He was a veteran of WWII, serving with the U.S. Navy in Hawaii. He enjoyed socializing with people and was an animal lover. 

Besides his wife, Theresa, he leaves one daughter, Lisa Barry, of South Portland, Maine; three grandchildren: Heather Borghesi (Dan) of Beverly, Mass., Jessica Reed (Josh) of Concord, Mass., and Kevin Barry (Danielle) of Bellingham, Mass.; three great-grandchildren: Brock Barry and Bailee Barry of Bellingham, and Owen Reed of Concord. 

The Mass of Christian Burial was Jan. 31 at St. James Church, Danielson, with burial will be in the spring at Holy Cross Cemetery with military honors. Donations: Alzheimer’s Association CT Chapter, 2075 Silas Deane Highway, Rocky Hill, CT 06067. Gagnon and Costello Funeral Home, 33 Reynolds St., Danielson.

 

Janet M. Bernier

DAYVILLE — Janet M. Bernier, 77, of Dayville, died Jan. 29, 2015, at Pierce Memorial Baptist Home in Brooklyn. She was the wife of Donald Bernier.. They were married Oct. 11, 1958, at Assumption Church in S. Bellingham, Mass. He died Nov. 27, 2008. 

She was born Oct. 24, 1937, in Woonsocket, R.I., daughter of the late Moise and Viola (Frigon) Desmarais. She was raised and attended school in Woonsocket and Bellingham. 

Janet was employed at Finkelsteins Sewing Mill in Woonsocket and at the age of 19 moved to Danielson and worked at Electro Motive in Willimantic. She has made her home in Killingly since her marriage and raised four children. 

In 1966 the family moved to the poultry farm in Dayville. She worked with her husband and family raising chickens for 31 years. Janet was also employed part time at Putnam Hallmark, then at Dowe’s Card and Gift. She worked full-time at the Hyde School in Woodstock as a prep chef. She enjoyed antiques, yard sales, travel, her home and cooking. 

She leaves her son Rene D. Bernier of Lexington, Ky.; three daughters Laurie Crown (Thomas) of Lexington, Lynn Wytas of Andover, Lisa Schmidt of Brooklyn; six grandchildren Victoria Nash and Elizabeth Bosompem of Kentucky, Benjamin and Nicholas Wytas of Andover, Morgan and Adele Schmidt of Brooklyn, and three great-grandchildren, Manuel, Nathan and Emma.

The Mass of Christian Burial was Jan. 31 at St. James Church, Danielson with burial in the spring in Holy Cross Cemetery. Donations: Creative Living Community of CT, 60 Church St., Manchester, CT 06040; or to the Recreation Fund of Pierce Memorial Baptist Home, 44 Canterbury Road, Brooklyn, CT 06234.  Gagnon and Costello Funeral Home, 33 Reynolds St., Danielson.

 

Ellen L. (Farris) Cayer

THOMPSON —  – Ellen Cayer, 80, of Porter Plain Rd., died Jan. 25, 2015, in UMass Memorial Hospital in Worcester. She was the companion of Stanley J. Chzaszcz for 35 years.  Born in 1934 in Neveada, Mo., she was the daughter of the late Dewey “Jesse” and Nyra Farris. 

Mrs. Cayer worked in the office of Dr. Park and Dr. Chung. 

Ellen enjoyed gardening, cooking, painting, and she was a talented seamstress.

Although Ellen did not have any children, she treated Stanley’s children as her own: John M. Chzaszcz of Putnam, Gary J. Chzaszcz of Thompson, and Steven M. Chzaszcz (Lucy) of Putnam and their children, Joseph, Magdalena, and Matthew; and great-granddaughter, Jasmine; a stepsister Viola Bowman; two stepbrothers Tony and John Hina. She was predeceased by her sister Barbara Mayall and her stepbrother Robert Hina.  

Visitation isfrom 5 to 8 p.m. Feb. 4 in Gilman Funeral Home, 104 Church St., Putnam. A gathering will begin in the funeral home at 10 a.m. Feb. 5 followed by a Mass of Christian Burial  at 11 in St. Mary Church of the Visitation, Providence Street with burial following in St. Mary Cemetery.  

 

Lawrence Houle,

Korean war vet

BROOKLYN — Lawrence (Kingfish) O. Houle, 81, died Jan. 24, 2015, at home.  

He was born in N. Grosvenordale, son of the late Alcide and Eva (LaFlamme) Houle and lived in Brooklyn,and prior to that Dayville and Thompson.  

He was a U.S. Navy veteran serving during Korea and was proud that he was in the Blimp Squadron.  He was a construction worker his specialty being concrete work, he also did carpentry.  He is a member of American Legion Post 67. He enjoyed horse racing.  

He leaves his wife Kim Marie (Brod) Houle; six sons; Lawrence and Houle (Bev), Ray Houle, both of N. Grosvenordale, Jean Houle of South Dakota, Phillip Houle of N. Grosvenordale, Daniel Houle and his life partner Jim of Boston; four daughters; Virginia Houle of Thompson, Laurel Houle of Brooklyn, Valentine Iamartino (Joseph) of Thompson; two stepdaughters; Elizabeth and Summer Barbeau and a daughter-in-law Deb Ness of Lake Park, Minn.; two brothers; Lionel and Fabyan Houle of Webster; eight gradchildren and six great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by one son, Shawn Houle and one daughter, Eva Houle; one brother, Armand Houle and three sisters; Belva Paradis Leona Larose and Vivian Houle. A Funeral Mass was Jan. 31 in St. Joseph Church, N. Grosvenordale. Donations: St. Joseph Grammar School Athletic Fund, N. Grosvenordale; or to St. James Grammar School Athletic Fund, Danielson. Shaw-Majercik Funeral Home, Webster.

 

Christopher Darnowski

PUTNAM — Christopher “Chris” J. Darnowski, 48, of Putnam, died Jan. 24, 2015, at Davis Place in Danielson. He was born July 12, 1966, in Danbury. He will be remembered for his love of Jesus, fishing and playing his guitar. He leaves his wife Dawn and stepson Noah of Woodstock; a brother Michael, III  and his fiancé Maryann of Webster; his mother Phillis Jaeger of Quinebaug; a nephew Michael, IV of Dayville; aunts and uncles Constance and Charles Stoll of Montville, Patricia and Joseph Studley of Naples, Fla.He was predeceased by his dad Michael Darnowski II. 

A Memorial Service was Jan. 31at the Calvary Assembly of God Church, Dudley. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Esther L. Lyon

WOODSTOCK — Esther L. Lyon, 80, died Jan. 31, 2015, at home. She was the wife of James Lyon Sr. He died in 1998. Born March 27, 1934, in Putnam, daughter of the late George and Anna (Baker) Botham Sr.  

Esther was employed by the State of Connecticut for 31 years working at Mansfield Training School, UConn and retired from John Dempsey Regional Center. A member of the Abington Congregational Church and served as a deacon, trustee and past president of the Women’s Guild of the church. She enjoyed NASCAR, local car racing, go carts, crossword puzzles, birds, all wildlife and fed all that visited her backyard.

She leaves her sons James Lyon Jr. of Woodstock, Roger Lyon of Thompson; grandsons Matthew Lyon of Ohio, Jordan Lyon of Thompson; daughter-in-law Virginia Lyon of Ohio;nieces, nephews and her dear friend Lois Molnar. She was predeceased by brother George Botham Jr., and sister Mary Currier. 

A Memorial Service will be at 10 a.m. Feb. 6 at the Abington Congregational Church, Rt. 97, Abington. Burial will be in Abington Cemetery in the spring. Donations:  Chaplaincy Program or Hospice, both at Day Kimball Hospital, PO Box 632, Putnam, CT 06260. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

 

Marguerite St. Jean

BROOKLYN — Marguerite St. Jean, 87, died of leukemia Jan. 26, 2015. She was born on Nov. 10, 1927, at home in Brooklyn to Leon and Marie Rose (Gosselin) Renaud. She was one of 15 children and the last of the Renaud girls. 

Marguerite married Maurice St. Jean on Nov. 23, 1946. They were married for 64 years until Maurice died Jan. 15, 2010. Marguerite was a homemaker and caregiver of her parents, children and grandchildren. She enjoyed playing bingo and knitting and crocheting for her family and friends.

She leaves four daughters, Mary Corey, Leona (Gerald) Mainville, Gail St. Jean and Doreen Berube; seven grandchildren, Laurie Lepine, Jason St. Jean, Marc and Nicholas Mainville, Katelyn Rondeau, Amber and Quinn Berube; her brother Robert (Linda) Renaud; nine great-grandchildren, including two new great-granddaughters Annabelle and Makayla. She was predeceased by her husband, Maurice; her only son Arthur and a granddaughter Kim Waterman.

The Mass of Christian Burial was Jan. 31 at St. James Church, Danielson, with burial in the spring in Holy Cross Cemetery, Danielson. Donations: American Cancer Society Relay For Life Team, the “Crazy Eights” that she was a member of for 10 years. Make check payable to American Cancer Society, mail to Katelyn Rondeau, 243 Valentine Rd., Pomfret Ctr., CT 06259.  Gagnon and Costello Funeral Home, 33 Reynolds St., Danielson.

 

Evelyn Capen

WEBSTER — Evelyn E. (Champany) Capen, 87, died Jan. 24, 2015, at the Webster Manor.  She was the wife of the late John W. Capen who died in 1980.  

She was born in Randolph, Vt., and lived in Webster for the past 40 years, prior to that Oxford and Vermont.  She was a waitress at Vernon Stiles Inn in Thompson and retired in 1984.  She enjoyed the casino.

She leaves two daughters: Cheryl Shays, and Rebecca Farren both of Webster, and she had a daughter that predeceased her, Diane Capen.  She also leaves a sister Viola R. Therrien of Webster; six grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; four great-great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by a brother Myrton Champany and two sisters Leona Sumner and Edith O’brien and Marguerite Kapitulik. 

Shaw-Majercik Funeral Home, Webster.

 

Jeanne Cofske

THOMPSON — Jeanne A. (Levesque) Cofske, 72, died Jan. 22, 2015, at home after a long illness.  She was the wife of 24 years of Ralph W. Cofske.  

She was born in Southbridge, daughter of the late Fernhand and Jeanette (Landry) Levesque and lived in Thompson for the past 22 years, prior to that Sutton, Mass., and Southbridge.  She was a office manager for Parent Sanitation in Danielson.  Her family describes her as  ”Gem” of a person.  She enjoyed crafts and reading in past years.  

She leaves two daughters; Deborah Gregoire of N. Grosvenordale and  Lisa West of Florida; two stepdaughters: Christine Hatfield of Grafton, Mass.,  and Michelle Cristo of Charlton; a sister Antoinette Seraphin of Woodstock; 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.  

There was a Celebration of Life  Feb. at the Valley Springs Sportsmen Cub, N. Grosvenordale. Burial was in W. Thompson Cemetery. Shaw-Majercik Funeral Home, Webster.

 

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