Alice Elizabeth Uhler ‘Betty’ Hale
Alice Elizabeth Uhler “Betty” Hale died peacefully at home, surrounded by her family, on May 6, 2026, at Selah Farm in Pomfret Center, Connecticut. She was 96 years old.
Born on April 3, 1930, in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York, Betty was the daughter of Alice Amelia (Nelson) Uhler and John Martin Uhler II. She was predeceased by her beloved husband, Newell Dawson Hale, whom she married in 1971; her sister, Madeleine “Mad” Lake; her brother, John M. Uhler; her stepdaughter, Leslie Hale Cooke; and her grandson, Benjamin Lee Cooke.
She is survived by her devoted son and daughter-in-law, Laurence Newton Hale II and Jane Currie Linnard Hale; her stepdaughters, Catherine Hale Sellick and her husband, John Sellick, and Lee Murray Hale and her husband, Alan Fitch; her cherished grandchildren, Helen Currie Hale, Newell Dawson Hale II, Peter Stancliff Hale, Ashley Eman Mannell and her husband, Benjamin Mannell, and Alec Newell Eman; and her adored great-grandchildren, Chloe, Clementine, and Clara Mannell. She also leaves behind a host of beloved nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, and great-grandnieces and nephews, all of whom she loved dearly.
Betty graduated from Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn in 1948. After a brief period living with her family in Concord, N.H., she fearlessly moved to Boston on her own, knowing no one, and quickly built a lifelong community of friends. She lived and worked in Boston for many years, rising to become a Senior Vice President in the insurance industry at a time when women were very rarely afforded such recognition of their intelligence and prowess. 
Throughout her remarkable life, Betty was a visionary, a philanthropist, and an indomitable force for good. She rarely accepted the word “no,” especially when it stood in the way of helping others. Her boundless energy, determination, and generosity transformed countless lives throughout northeastern Connecticut and beyond.
Betty believed deeply in the power of community, education, health care, and the arts, especially for children. Among her many accomplishments, she spearheaded the effort to create a YMCA in Putnam so that every child in northeastern Connecticut could learn to swim and feel included and valued. Through her leadership and the support of a community inspired by her vision, the Hale YMCA Youth and Family Center opened in 2016, and has been serving not just the community’s children, but her vision created a hub of health and connection for thousands of members of all ages, making the Hale YMCA one of the most successful branches of the YMCA of Greater Hartford.
Together with her husband, Newell, Betty chaired Day Kimball Hospital’s New Century Campaign, helping establish the Hale Medical Pavilion, including surgical suites and the birthing center where generations of families, including her own grandchildren, received compassionate care and warm welcomes into the world.
When asked about her profession, Betty proudly described herself as an “Arts Administrator,” a title she held with passion for more than 50 years. A lifelong lover of the performing arts, she helped found The Three C’s and Opera New England, which evolved into Performing Arts of Northeastern Connecticut. Over more than five decades with Betty at the helm in some way, these volunteer organizations brought professional opera, symphony, and dramatic performances and arts education to more than 500,000 schoolchildren across 21 towns, entirely free of charge. To ensure all children could participate, Betty collaborated to co-found Wheels to Learning, providing transportation for school districts without funding for such experiences. For generations of children, those encounters with the arts were transformative and life-changing.
Following Newell’s passing, Betty established the Newell D. Hale Foundation in his memory, dedicated to improving quality of life in northeastern Connecticut through support for the arts, health care, and the well-being of children and families. That mission continues today through the soon-to-be-renamed Newell and Betty Hale Foundation.
Betty also gave generously of her time and resources to numerous organizations and causes throughout the region. She served on the Connecticut Commission on the Arts, volunteered with the Pomfret Proprietors, and received the Connecticut Council on Philanthropy’s John H. Filer Award. Her support for education included the Hale House and the Newell & Betty Hale Scholarship at Pomfret School, the Hale Elementary School Building at Rectory School, the Pomfret Community School Arts Fund, and Horizons at Rectory School.
She was a dedicated supporter of Day Kimball Healthcare, the Pomfret Public Library, Community Kitchen of Northeastern Connecticut, TEEG, and Access Agency, organizations that reflected her belief that every person deserves the opportunity to thrive. Betty also helped establish the Jules L. Dienstag, MD, and Betty and Newell Hale Endowed Chair in Gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital in gratitude for the exceptional care she and Newell received there.
A longtime member of Christ Church in Pomfret, Betty worshipped faithfully each week, singing joyfully from the last pew and drawing strength from a faith that inspired her lifelong commitment to honoring the dignity and worth of every person.
Betty worked hard, but she loved even harder. She was a gracious and legendary host who delighted in welcoming family and friends to Selah Farm in Pomfret and to Carlisle Bay in Antigua, her cherished “second home” for more than 45 years. Whether at post-opera celebrations, New Year’s Eve gatherings, summer barbecues by the pool, or afternoons spent among loved ones, Betty created spaces where people felt special, valued, and deeply loved.
Though she received countless honors for her philanthropy and community leadership, Betty’s greatest pride and joy was her family, especially her children and grandchildren, whom she adored beyond measure, and cheered on with wild abandon. Her love has left an enormous, indelible, Nana-shaped imprint on their hearts, and her love will live on in them as perhaps her greatest legacy.
Betty was an inspiration to so many. Her impact along with those of her beloved husband, Newell, will continue for generations through the institutions, programs, and people whose lives they transformed.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Betty’s memory may be made to the two organizations which helped her family honor and care for her with peace, tenderness and dignity in the final days of her remarkable life: Day Kimball Health at Home, Hospice & Palliative Care of Northeastern Connecticut, 415 Riverside Dr., Suite 3, North Grosvenordale, CT 06255; or to Christ Church Pomfret, 527 Pomfret St., Pomfret, CT 06258.
Her family is deeply grateful to the many people who accompanied Betty on her life’s truly extraordinary journey. The whole community is invited to celebrate Betty’s life at noon on Saturday, May 16 at Pomfret School’s Clark Memorial Chapel with a rite of Christian Burial, immediately followed by a grand, Betty-style reception at the Hale Family YMCA Youth and Family Center, 9 Technology Park Drive in Putnam.  Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.

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John ‘Jack’ S. Karpowicz Jr.
PUTNAM — Jack Karpowicz, 80, of Sabin Street, passed away on May 7, 2026, surrounded by the people who mattered most to him, his family. He was the loving and devoted husband of Denise (Cabana) Karpowicz, with whom he shared a life built on loyalty, humor, and quiet strength for 53 years.
Born May 19, 1945, in Holyoke, Mass.., Jack was the son of the late John S. and Ellen (Paul) Karpowicz. He earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from American International College, a foundation that carried him through a long and steady career as a cost accountant. Known for his precision and work ethic, he contributed his talents to companies including Spalding, Jamesbury, Warren Pumps, Saint-Gobain, and Weetabix.
He was a man who showed up for his family, without question and without fail. Whether it was time spent fishing, a game of pool, or simply being present, Jack found his greatest fulfillment in the everyday moments. He had a lifelong love of animals, a deep appreciation for music, especially Bob Dylan, and a passion for classic cars, none more cherished than his old 1966 Charger. 
He leaves his son, Steve Karpowicz (Shelly); his daughter, Leigh DuPont (David); his sister, Karen Murphy; and his grandchildren, Chloe and Dylan Karpowicz. He was predeceased by his sister, Sandra Little.
Visitation is from 1 to 4 p.m. May 16 at Gilman Funeral Home, 104 Church St., Putnam.  A service will be held for Jack at 2 p.m. at the funeral home. Donations: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

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