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Lynette Deane Tolar
PUTNAM — Lynette Deane Tolar moved to Putnam, Connecticut—where she and her husband, John Etheridge, have lived for the past 20 years—as a transplanted Jayhawk from Lawrence, Kan.
Born in 1950, Lyn graduated high school in her native state and then graduated from the University of Missouri Kansas City with a degree in business. Lyn was a senior Program Manager with Sprint, a billing manager for medical services in Pascoag, R.I., and held several leadership roles within the Day Kimball Medical Group before her retirement. But what really defined Lyn was the love of her family—Zeke, Sasha, Balsam, and Aaron, her children, and then her six delightful grandJayhawks—and her service to the community. As a dedicated and beloved member of the Bahá’í Faith, Lyn was involved in various service projects that ranged from race amity to community cleanup and beautification. She was a member of the Greater Putnam Interfaith Council, a member of the NAACP, an organizer of the annual Martin Luther King memorial breakfast, and an early recruit to the Afghan Family Resettlement project. Everyone who met or worked with this beautiful soul loved her for her kindness, faith, compassion, sweetness, empathy, drive, wisdom, and strength. The family is heartbroken without her, her garden laments her absence, her friends miss her terribly, the organizations she supported struggle without her, and the world is a little less bright without her smile. But God called and she was, as ever, obedient.
Sheila J. Gough
WOODSTOCK — Sheila (Stilu) Gough, 72, of Rocky Hill Rd., died peacefully April 10, 2022, at home with her husband Rowland, her sister Tami, cousin Marlene and granddaughter Cheyenne by her side. She was born on April 28, 1949, in Putnam, the daughter of the late Demitri and Myrtle (Chickering) Stilu.
Sheila attended Nichols College and went on to graduate with an associate’s degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. She worked for American Optical for 38 years. She was a member of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Putnam VFW Albert Breault Post # 1523. She enjoyed cooking, going to the casinos, traveling to New York City and wintering in Port Charlotte, Fla., with her husband. She also enjoyed tending to her vegetable and flower gardens and going to the beach with her family, however, most of all, she enjoyed terrorizing her husband. In addition to her husband, she leaves her son, Keith Herrick of Lebanon; her sister, Tami LaBelle (Arthur) of Thomson; her grandchildren, Kaine Herrick, Cheyenne Herrick, and Kyle Herrick; her niece, Angela LaBelle; and her nephew, James LaBelle. She was predeceased by her son, Tige Herrick, and her brother, Danny Stilu.
A private graveside service will take place at West Thompson Cemetery. Donations: Hartford Healthcare Hospice, 1290 Silas Deane Highway, Wethersfield, CT, 06109. Gilman and Valade Funeral Homes and Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam.
‘Bob’ Gomes services
PUTNAM — Robert “Bob” Louis Gomes, 85, of Putnam and Webster , died Jan. 9, 2022. Visitation is 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 22 at the Gilman and Valade Funeral Homes and Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam, with a Masonic Service at 7:30. The Church Service is at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 23 at the South Woodstock Baptist Church, Roseland Park Road. Donations: South Woodstock Baptist Church, PO Box 86, South Woodstock, CT 06281. Attn.: Trish. (in memo: “Camperships”). Why? We passed by a church summer camp each week. He would reminisce about church summer camp when he was a boy. He wants to help kids that otherwise might not get that experience of a lifetime he had.
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