February 4, 1968 – July 7, 2024

Gilbert Booker Dillard III, a native of Springfield, MA was born February 4, 1958, at 5:14pm. He was the first and oldest son of Opal Jean Gray and Gilbert Booker Dillard Jr., two first generation college students who met and fell in love at Central State University in Wilberforce, OH. Gilbert was born in Newburgh, NY and spent the first few years of his life in Oklahoma before his family migrated to Massachusetts for work, income, education and to live the American dream. Gilbert was raised in Western MA but spent most summers during his youth in Oklahoma assisting grandparents and great grandparents with siblings and cousins. Thanksgiving dinners were spent with family in Newburgh, New York.

Most who knew Gilbert would describe him as charismatic and smart. He was known for having intellectual and stimulating conversations with family and friends who recognized his gifted brilliance. He graduated from Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, MA and briefly attended Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT before embarking on military service with the United States Army. In January 1977 Gilbert enlisted in the armed services as an Army Nuclear Weapons Maintenance Specialist 55G MOS and was stationed in Germany with 9th Ordinance Company, Miesau Army Depot, West Germany. As part of the NATO Defense under the command of the late General Colin Powell, former United States Secretary of State, he excelled and performed his duty to his country with honor until May 1984.

Gilbert served as an operational clerk maintaining stock, records, accounts and reports on nuclear materials, repairs and inspections of weapons. His knowledge of logistics, safety and compliance was consistently recognized and acknowledged during his tenure until his honorable discharge in 1984.

Gilbert Booker Dillard III compassionately served God, Country, Family and Community. After his military service he worked in Finance as a mortgage loan officer for several Maryland based companies. He ultimately relocated back to Springfield, MA and volunteered for projects with University of Massachusetts Medical School and Bay State Health. He was loved by many and is survived by daughters Gennea and Tianna, mother Opal Dillard, sisters Bonita and Dorothy, brothers Goren ’80 and Gravin. He will certainly be missed.

James “Jim” Kevin Manfield, 54, passed away on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Nashua. He was born in Worcester, Massachusetts on May 12, 1970, son of James J. Manfield and Therese (Gignilliat) Manfield.
Jim attended Williston Northampton Middle and High School, class of 1988; Boston College where he received his BS in Marketing, class of 1992; and the University of New Hampshire Whittemore School of Business and Economics where he received his MBA, class of 1994.
Jim was a loving and dedicated father. His pride and joy, Javin, will forever cherish their backyard football, ‘lawn shots’ hockey games, fantasy football battles, grilling sessions, sports bonding, and multi-hour-long Yahtzee tournaments. Javin will miss their father son vacations whether for hockey or fun.
Jim worked as a business analyst and program manager for many years for various companies in Colorado and New Hampshire including Sun Microsystems, Fidelity Investments, Lawson Software, Kronos, and Deloitte Consulting.
Sports were an important part of Jim’s life. As a talented athlete, Jim grew up playing youth sports and spent much time playing football, hockey and baseball throughout high school. He was also a passionate sports fan and especially enjoyed watching the Boston Bruins, the New England Patriots, and all Boston College sports. Through his love of sports, Jim made numerous acquaintances and friends who shared his passion. Over the course of his life Jim spent countless hours playing, attending, and watching sports, creating lasting memories and bonds with family and friends.
Jim is survived by his son, Javin T. Manfield, his father James J. Manfield, and his sister and brother-in-law Christine ’85 (Manfield) and Mike Reading along with many nieces, cousins, and other close family. Jim is predeceased by his mother Therese Manfield. Jim also leaves behind many friends who knew him as a loyal friend, captivating story teller and life of the party.
Services: Visitation will be held on Saturday, June 22, 2024 from 10 AM to 12 noon at Davis Funeral Home One Lock St., Nashua, NH 03064. Family and friends are invited to attend. Those who wish to make a memorial contribution in Jim’s memory may do so to the college scholarship fund for his son, Javin T. Manfield. Checks can be made out to Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC and mailed to Jim’s sister Christine Reading, 89 Maple Street, West Newbury, MA 01985.

Chloë Constance Kriebel Metcalf died in her home in Kawasaki, Japan, on February 29, 2024, from a suddenly acute illness. She was thirty-six years old. It is fitting that she died on a rare date, as she was an extraordinary person.

Chloë was born in Seattle, Washington, but grew up in Northampton, where she attended the Smith College Campus School through grade six, the Williston Northampton School through grade eight, and then Northampton High School, from which she graduated as co-valedictorian in 2006. While she was in high school, she received special permission to take courses at Smith College, including four years of intensive Japanese, and most school days commuted up and down Elm Street on a kick scooter. After high school she moved to Montreal to study at McGill University, where she majored in biology and linguistics with a minor in Japanese. A junior year abroad at Sofia University in Tokyo was funded in part by a Japanese government grant awarded for her exceptional fluency. She returned to McGill for her senior year, which was to be her last in the western hemisphere. After graduating in 2010, she moved to Yokohama to work as a translator by day and pursue her musical ambitions as a rock songwriter and performer by night.

She was at work on the 43rd floor of her office building in Yokohama when the Tohoku earthquake hit in 2011. The building swayed and furniture rolled across floors. It was days before employees could safely be allowed to leave. They slept on the floor and ate from vending machines. Later she evacuated for a time to Osaka to avoid radiation from the nuclear plant meltdown in Fukushima. None of this undermined her resolve to make a life in Japan.

Throughout her life Chloë was driven by intense enthusiasms, creativity, and determination. Her passions included singing, acting, writing, playing the piano, drawing, costume design and sewing, botany, photography, coin collecting, art-rock music, science fiction, travel, and esoteric mysticism. She maintained a website of translations of her favorite Japanese band’s song lyrics, which acquired an international following and led to her creating a side business helping non-Japanese fans acquire concert tickets and CDs, and acting as a tour guide for their visits to Japan. These friends hosted her in turn, notably for a tour of Russia in which she performed with dancer Amy Gray in a number of cities including St. Petersburg.

The first band she fronted in Japan was called The The Kuro, but she hadn’t yet found the musicians who could help her fully realize her complex compositions. That changed after she met Kazunari Ishizaka, who approached her after one of her performances to say, “I am the guitarist you need.” She agreed, and their musical and personal collaboration, and the group Alien Idol which they founded together, was the great satisfaction of her creative life.

Chafing at the strictures of corporate employment, she came to work for years as a freelance translator, on projects as diverse as manga and scientific textbooks. At the time of her death she held what she described as her dream job with the company Abracadabra, translating Japanese pop culture materials for international fans.

Chloë’s parents, George Kriebel and Sarah Metcalf, and her brother Simon Metcalf ’09, traveled to Japan after learning of Chloë’s death to meet with her friends and deal with her affairs. A traditional Japanese cremation was performed there, along with a memorial service, which was gratifyingly well-attended. Her many mourners spoke of her talents, intellect, dramatic flair, beauty, charisma and kindness.

In addition to her immediate family, Chloë is survived by aunts, uncles and numerous cousins.

A local memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 11, at 1:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence, which Chloë attended throughout her childhood and youth. All are welcome.

It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden death of Varick M. Warren of Warwick, NY on February 1, 2024.
Varick was born September 15, 1960, in Douglaston, NY to Marjory Ann (nee Thomas) Warren and the late Douglas James Warren of Warwick, NY. He lived in Douglas Manor, NY until age 12 when his family moved to Manhattan. He attended Waldorf School in Garden City, NY and New Lincoln school in Manhattan, NY and graduated from Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, MA where he played on the ice hockey team. He was a great player and still played multiple times a week in Newburgh, NY, until his passing, and of course was a huge Rangers fan. Varick was an active member of the Ultimate Advantage weightlifting community, spending multiple days per week supporting and mentoring others. Varick loved Fire Island where he spent most of his childhood summers and continued to vacation there every summer. There he flourished, going fishing, body surfing, and sailing, among a few hobbies while developing lifelong friendships which he cherished dearly.
Varick had an accomplished career beginning on Wall Street back in the 1980’s. Eventually he transitioned into the produce industry where he excelled for over 30 years. Most recently he was Chief Operating Officer at Solata Foods, Newburgh, NY. He was an innovator and an esteemed fixture in the industry, always thinking ahead and developing new products. He was highly respected by his colleagues and co-workers. He had a huge heart and was known for offering opportunities to so many.
Varick was charismatic, generous, and knew how to make others laugh. He was a kind, big hearted man, who was always there to help those in need. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.
Varick was a very loved husband, son, father, brother, uncle, and friend, of which he had many. Varick is survived by his two children, Mckenzie and Molly Warren; his loving wife, Neide Vera; her four children: Amanda, Kimberly, Maria, and Anna Vera and their children: Alan Vera, Sophia Rajos, and Penelope Reales; his mother, Marjory Warren; two sisters, Shaun Bangert and Andrea (Oney) Huffman; and his cat, Kitty.
Visitation will be on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. with a funeral service at 6:00 p.m. at Lazear-Smith & Vander Plaat Memorial Home, 17 Oakland Avenue, Warwick, NY.
In lieu of flowers, please reach out to Mckenzie Warren (mckenzie.j.warren@gmail.com) to support the creation of a scholarship fund in his name.

James “Jim” Arthur Hardy passed away at home surrounded by family in the early morning hours of January 31, 2024. Jim is survived by his wife of 40 years June (Egan) Hardy, his mother Joan (Zielny) Hardy, his son Wesley Hardy ’04 and daughter-in-law Shelly, his brother John “Jack” Hardy ’71 and sister-in-law Kathy, and many nieces and nephews. An Easthampton native born July 10, 1956, James was known for his wit, and dry sense of humor. He graduated Cum Laude from The Williston Northampton School earning a medal in wrestling and went on to study art at UMASS under John Grillo. A lifelong recreational fisherman introduced to the sport by his grandfather Alexander Zielny, James maintained maps of the “best spots” both new and old. A job as a bank teller in his youth expanded into a thirty-year career in the securities industry, affording him the ability to create an at-home art studio later in life. His works have been on display in multiple local exhibitions; and fill his family’s homes. Donations can be made to The Hospice Foundation of America.

Calling hours will be Monday, February 5, 2024 from 3:30 to 6:30 pm at the Czelusniak Funeral Home. The funeral service will be held Tuesday at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s Annunciation Chapel, Beacon St. in Florence, MA at 10 am.

Morgan J. Hoye, 47, of Pawtucket, RI, passed away on January 12, 2024 following a long struggle with a chronic illness.

Born on April 23, 1976, in Wellesley, MA, Morgan graduated from the Fessenden School in 1992 where he captained the varsity football and basketball teams and received the Keppleman Cup for outstanding leadership. Morgan later attended the Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, MA where he played varsity football. After graduating from Newton North High School in 1996, Morgan worked in the hospitality industry in Cambridge and Boston for fifteen years. Music, however, was always Morgan’s passion. He loved singing, writing song lyrics and performing as a karaoke DJ in Boston and Providence for over two decades.

Growing up in Massachusetts, Morgan loved candlepin bowling, the Bruins, the Patriots, collecting baseball cards, going to Canobie Lake Park in New Hampshire on the weekends with his Nana, Priscilla Barnard, and riding his BMX bike all over town and having epic snowball fights with his brother Alex. Morgan shared a love of animals and pets with his mother, Jackie, enjoyed fishing with his father, Bob, in Maine and New Hampshire, and traveling in love and joy with his former wife Carlotta.

Morgan is survived by his former wife, Carlotta Carzaniga of Boston; his father, Robert Hoye (Michele) of Dover MA; his mother, Jacqueline Jacquiot of Boston; his brother, Alex Hoye (Helen) of Oakland CA, and a niece, Eva Hoye, and nephew, Julian Hoye.

The family will have a private burial.

Donations may be made in memory of Morgan J. Hoye, to the Fessenden School, 250 Waltham Street, West Newton MA 02465.