The Reverend George B. Higgins died on April 25th, 2014 at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx, NY at the age of 87. Reverend Higgins He is survived by his loving family.
“The Rev” will be fondly remembered as a lively presence in the pulpit and throughout the communities where he lived during his many successful pastorates. With his tartan Tam O’Shanter, his Scottish mustache and walking stick (aka: his companion) he was always ready to engage anyone he crossed paths with – on just about any known subject.
George was born and raised in North Adams, MA and always maintained a healthy pride in all things New England, especially with regard to the Red Sox, The Berkshires, Cape Cod and his Pilgrim roots all the way back to the Mayflower. George also loved to honor his Scottish and Nova Scotian heritage.
After graduating from Williams College in 1949 he entered the US Navy. After an honorable discharge, he answered his call to the ministry earning a Master’s in Divinity from New York Theological Seminary.
During that time, he married Marie Stovel of Devonshire Bermuda and accepted his first pastorate at the Congregational church in Vernon CT where they also began their family. Thereafter, he went on to serve multi-year stints at churches in Milford NH, Dover DE, Stony Stratford UK, Dalton MA, Briarcliff Manor NY and Hawthorne NY.
Known as an excellent builder of congregations as well as a thorough and entertaining preacher, many will fondly remember his different pulpit traditions – most especially his Christmas Eve rendering of the birth of Christ in the Braid Scotts translation.
George enjoyed a life-long affiliation with Camp Beckett where he spent his childhood summers and Williams College returning each year for alumni reunions. He also enjoyed his many civic involvements including terms serving as Town Moderator in Eastham MA, Dalton MA and Milford NH, Chairman of the Cape Cod Conservation Committee, active membership in local Rotary Clubs and his time as Chaplain and ambulance driver at the BMFD.
George invested 65 years of his life in Christian ministry and was actively preaching until one month before his passing. He touched many lives with his booming voice and outgoing personality – and will not soon be forgotten.
James A. Gillchrest, Jr., 88, died peacefully at home, surrounded by his loving family, on Wednesday, April 1, 2015. Born in Thomaston on Nov. 28, 1926, he was the son of James, Sr. and Eva Demuth Gillchrest. He began his education in Thomaston, and later graduated from Williston Academy in Northampton, Mass.
