Christopher Maher ’76

Chris MaherChris Maher, 55 years, passed suddenly Sunday of respiratory failure at home.

He was born in Holyoke, MA and attended schools on the east coast. He graduated from Williston-Northampton School in Easthampton, MA. He also attended Amherst College in Amherst, MA. He graduated from Yale University in New Haven, CT. It was then he made his home in California. He gained his Masters Degree from Mills College in Oakland, CA.

A lifelong learner, Chris had many talents in languages, music, and the arts. After his post graduate experiences, he worked for a hotel as a translator in San Francisco for a number of years. He relocated to Los Angeles and has made him home there for the last 20 plus years. He has been active in the arts.

Chris was predeceased by his mother, Mary T. Maher in 1997. His father, Richard J,. Maher died in 2004. He leaves his sisters, Maureen Cotter (Mike), Eileen Maher (Mark LaFrancis), and brother, Richard F. Maher (Liza). He also leaves five nieces: Laura O’Brien, Elizabeth Barsalou, Carolyn Cotter, Grace Maher, and Mary LaFrancis) and three nephews (Christopher Cotter, Dylan Maher, and Mark LaFrancis), and two grandnieces Abby and Caitlin O’Brien), whom he loved very much, to remember him. He has two dear friends in Los Angeles, David Douglas and Stephen Rau who have cared for him. Chris also leaves Nick Jordan who remembers him respectfully.

7 thoughts on “Christopher Maher ’76”

  1. I was very sorry to hear this sad news. My thoughts and prayers are with Chris’ family and friends.

  2. I will always remember Chris as a soft spoken thoughtful good friend. I am so sorry for your loss, he was a gentle soul.

  3. I can’t believe this. Chris was such a big part of my high school life. I knew he had health challenges but didn’t expect this. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends. It was Chris who showed me that there was a church in Easthampton that never locked its doors, and we would go there at odd hours and Chris would play their pipe organ.

  4. When I hear about the absolutely crazy and mean things that some kids do today, Chris was the antithesis of all of that! He was soft spoken, a thinker, a very good human being and a role model for all of his classmates. He kept us all grounded without either him or us knowing it: our John Lennon if you will. Rest in peace my friend.

  5. I am saddened to hear of Chris’s death. He was an inspiration to many at Williston who loved learning.

  6. This is very sad news. Chris was a wonderful, dear friend, a brilliant intellect and artist, and there is no doubt his unique gaze and humor will be greatly missed. It is times like this that one regrets not maintaing the strong bonds we forge with others along our life course. I hope all those replying here are faring well.
    Cyrus

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