Robert Warren Hisey, internationally known chemical engineer for the pulp and paper industry, died on March 11, 2024 at his home in Sarasota, Florida. He was born in Chicago, Illinois and was 92 years old when he died.

Dr. Hisey was the valedictorian of the 1952 class at Middlebury College and earned a PhD in Chemical Engineering at the Institute of Paper Chemistry in 1958. He had a long and distinguished career in the pulp and paper industry, including the design, construction, and operation of leading-edge paper making machinery and plants. In retirement, he was an avid and accomplished philatelist, regularly producing innovative and award-winning exhibits; he also wrote several philatelic books on South African stamps. Like his father and grandfather before him, he also pursued wood-working, building antique replica furniture as well as miniature doll-house furniture. He also constructed models of the solar system, including a reproduction of the Antikythera mechanism.

He is survived by his wife Elizabeth, his sons Peter of Chicago; Charles of Poultney, Vermont; Richard of Carlisle, Massachusetts; William of Samford, Florida; and daughter Stephanie of Sarasota, Florida. He is also survived by eight grandchildren and two great granddaughters. His son Robert, of Tampa Florida, passed away in 2021.

He was the son of Willis Oury Hisey and Margaret McDaniel of Portland, Oregon. A celebration of Bob’s life will be held on April 6, 2024. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that any donations be made to Tidewell Hospice or The Olena Zelenska Foundation – for Ukrainian children.

Charles Dickinson (Dick) Showalter passed away peacefully on March 17, 2024, in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Dick was born on September 3, 1927, in South Windham, Maine, the son of Arthur H. and Marguerite Dickinson Showalter. He was born on the kitchen table when the doctor was delayed one hour on the trolley. Dick spent his early childhood in South Windham and Waban, Massachusetts before moving with his family to Northampton, Massachusetts. He is a proud graduate of Williston Academy and Purdue University. Dick served with honor in the United States Army, 20th Combat Engineers 3rd Army during the Korean Conflict.

Following his military service, Dick married Charlotte Fry in May 1953. Soon thereafter they moved to Lockport, New York, where Dick joined his brother Arthur (deceased) and purchased the S.S. Gooding Co. in Lockport. They ran a very successful printing business for thirty-five years before selling the company in 1989.

Dick and Charlotte spent many happy years in Lockport where they raised their five children. He served the community as President of the Lockport School Board, Orleans-Niagara Board of Cooperative Education, Kenan Center, Lockport Town and Country Club and The Tuscarora Club.

Upon his retirement, Dick and Charlotte moved to Bonita Springs, Florida, for sunshine and year-round golf. They remained there until 2006, when they moved to Pinehurst, North Carolina. Charlotte passed away in 2007, after 53 wonderful years of marriage. Dick volunteered at more than 100 golf tournaments and spent years volunteering at the Reid Heart Center. He was always extremely active in his community.

Dick is survived by his five children, Susan Helander (John), Stephen Showalter (Maria), John Showalter (Nancy), Paul Showalter (Sharon), and Kim Showalter, as well as six grandchildren, Katharine Lange (Christopher), Alexander Rae, Stephanie Payne (Bill), Sarah Showalter, Lindsey Platts (Jordan) and Caroline Showalter (Anthony); nine great-grandchildren, David and Charlotte Lange, Landon and Liv Showalter, Lane and Henry Platts, Christian and Wyatt Payne and Paislee Showalter. He is also survived by his loving companion of 15 years, Sylvia Jansen, her daughter Heidi Spencer (Mark) and nieces Elizabeth Hubbard, Ann Buscemi (Peter), Nancy Clark (Peter) and Judy Slabyk (Steve) and nephew Ed Hubbard (Lynn).

A memorial service will be held at 4:00 p.m. Friday, March 22, 2024, at Boles Funeral Home, 425 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Hospice Foundation of FirstHealth would be appreciated.

William Frederick “Bill” Armstrong died Friday evening, May 19th, 2023 – a week shy of his 98th birthday – at Shrewsbury Crossing in Shrewsbury, MA, where he had lived for the past 14 months. His three children were with him that night and, while the last several years had had its challenges, his final days were peaceful.

He was born in Worcester on May 29th, 1925, and spent his early years in Shrewsbury and Worcester with his parents and two brothers. From the stories we have heard, those were good – and often boisterous – years, and up until the week he died, he enjoyed touring the streets of Shrewsbury. Following a stint in the U.S. Army, he returned home, spent a year at St. Mark’s in Southborough before heading to college at Harvard, where he met Nancy Rice who he married in July, 1950.

His middle years were focused on his career and on raising a family. His career focused on all things related to the manufacturing of felt and we never lacked for a felt tablecloth or a Christmas tree skirt. His jobs took him to Wrentham, MA; Newburgh, NY; Ridgefield, CT; New York City; and, finally in 1970, to Grafton, MA, after taking a job with the Felters Company in Millbury. During those years, he and Nancy raised their family and gave their children a wonderful upbringing, with lots of outdoor activities, Cape Cod vacations, ski trips to Vermont, animals galore, and holidays full of family and friends.

He was predeceased by his wife, Nancy (Rice) Armstrong, in 1975 and never remarried. He spent the last 50 years based in Grafton but maintained strong ties to Falmouth, where he loved to sail, golf, and vacation. He also enjoyed trips to Vermont where he served as the center for the traditional Thanksgiving Day football game, a role that he played into his 90’s. He was thrifty….really thrifty, loved animals (particularly dogs), and was very happy puttering around his yard, tending to the lawn, cutting down trees, and keeping his equipment in working order, without spending any money on it. If he could do it himself, he did. If it could be fixed with duct tape, it was. That willful spirit remained until the end, with him insisting that he did not need help and he could manage things on his own.

In addition to his wife, he was predeceased by his parents, Stuart and Dorothy (Bickford) Armstrong, and his brothers, Richard Armstrong and John Armstrong. He is survived by his children, William F. Armstrong, III (Becky McCullough), of Falmouth, MA, Abby Armstrong of Sharon, VT, and Halley Allen (Gus) of Holden, MA as well as by his grandchildren, George Armstrong, Emma Armstrong, Sarah Allen Neidhardt (Kyle) and Elizabeth Allen (Michael Boller), and his great granddaughter, Ada Elliott Neidhardt. He is also survived by his nephew, Stuart Armstrong (Mike Levesque), and his nieces, Leslie Armstrong (Jeff Bacon) and Susan Armstrong. He also always enjoyed seeing his numerous nieces and nephews on the Rice/Gainey side of the family when he was on the Cape.

Over the past few years there were many visits from friends and family and an abundance of kindness from the wonderful nurses and staff at Shrewsbury Crossing and Notre Dame Hospice, which made such a difference and for which we are so appreciative. Thank you very much!

Calling hours will be held at the Roney Funeral Home in North Grafton, MA from 4:00 – 6:00 P.M. on Tuesday, May 30th. He will be buried with Nancy in Falmouth at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Smile Train – https://www.smiletrain.org/ – an organization our father supported over the years.

Victor H. Keiser, Jr. of Palm Coast, Florida, died in his home on March 12, 2023, at the age of 96.

Vic was born in Akron, Ohio to Victor and Armilda (Brome) Keiser on November 18, 1926. He was predeceased by his wife, Betty Keiser; his daughter, Nina; his stepson, Mike Hanson; as well as his brothers, David and John “Jack” Keiser; and his stepbrothers David and Philip Martin.

He is survived by his brothers, Lincoln (Julé Crawford) and Jeffrey (Deborah) Keiser; grandchildren Daniel and Mindy Thomas; his stepchildren, Julie and David Hanson; his stepsister, Rebecca Fralick; nieces, Nancy and Lael Keiser, and nephews Jon, Luke and Nate Keiser, and Drew Martin; good friend, Marie Wolf, as well as many other relatives and friends of all ages.

Throughout his life, Vic was an adventurer, loving a good time and a sweet dessert. Though his family was scattered across the country, for years they gathered in Michigan for summer reunions, a summer tradition begun by his parents in the late 40s. As a young man, Vic spent his time in Michigan chopping wood, laying flooring, building sheds, painting, hanging light fixtures, and joining in any task needing his various skills. Later, he rode his bike for miles, stopping to rest at the local ice cream shop for his vanilla cone. He and Betty also rode their bicycle built for two around Onekama, stopping for ice cream to recharge. He loved playing word games like Botticelli around a fire on the beaches of Lake Michigan, using his sharp mind to stump young and old as they tried to guess the answers to his riddles or the mystery of his magic tricks. Finding Vic’s keys in the sands of the beach at Lake Michigan after a night around the fire was often the Grand Finale of a summer well spent, surrounded by his family and friends.

He also loved music, tv, old movies and Bridge, which he played at the master’s level until the end of his life. He was a skilled woodworker who for years had a backyard studio, creating furniture for Whitman College and his loved ones.

Vic attended Oberlin College where he met his future wife, Betty Detweiler, until his education was interrupted by World War II, when he left school and enlisted in the US Navy. After the war ended, he participated as a radio man for the Navy testing atom bombs at the Bikini Atoll. Following his discharge from the Navy, he returned to Oberlin, and later transferred to Lawrence College (now Lawrence University), where he was awarded his bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He taught mathematics at military service dependent high schools in Japan and Germany. He later attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he earned a Master’s degree in physics and mathematics, followed by a Ph.D. in mathematics. He taught at the university level at Idaho State University and then at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, where he taught for many years until his retirement. Following his retirement, he continued teaching at military dependent high schools in Iceland, Great Britain, and Austria. He also taught advanced mathematics courses at the high school level in Palm Coast as a volunteer.

Vic was a mentor to his younger brothers and younger relatives and friends. His kindness, love of life, and unassuming manner is his legacy to all who knew him. The world is emptier without him.

Kenneth Herbert Barratt
August 10, 1929 – December 25, 2023

Kenneth Barratt passed away peacefully at his home at La Posada in Green Valley, Arizona. He is survived by his wife, Sabina (Zaleski) Barratt and his three sons, Stephen and his wife Carol of Long Valley, New Jersey, Curtis ’73 and his wife Diane of Hampton, New Hampshire and David and his wife Lynn of Cocoa Beach, Florida; along with five grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

Kenneth was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended Williston Academy in Easthampton, Massachusetts graduating in 1947. There he was know as “Fingers Barratt” for his skill on the piano. He attended Wesleyan University graduating with the class of 1951. During his time in college, he met and fell in love with Sabina to whom he was married for 73 years.

He worked his whole career in the industrial rubber industry moving to
Massachusetts, Ohio, Delaware and New Hampshire. In 1973 he founded
Barr-Chem Associates, a Manufacturers Representative firm, that he ran
until his retirement in 1994.

His focus was always his family. He had many interests including skiing,
sailing and golf. But his main passion, that he stayed with his whole life,
was music. He delighted in entertaining people and joining with other
musicians to collaborate. Throughout his life he always had something
going with music; mostly big band jazz. He was with the big band
Suburbanaires in Sudbury, Massachusetts in the 1960’s and 70’s. When
he moved to Green Valley, he quickly fell in with other musicians to
entertain folks there as a member of the Big Band Sounds of Green Valley
and other groups.

Plans are for internment at the Green Valley Cemetery. There will be a
small memorial service for family only.

Francis William Lovett Jr., age 101, of Longmont, Colorado passed away on Saturday, November 4, 2023.

Francis was featured by his college alma mater, Wesleyan University, in their spring 2023 alumni magazine. Read more at: “Remembering the Poetry of Military Life: Francis Lovett ’45 and the Camp Hale National Monument”