Elizabeth Jones Crandall

Elizabeth Jones Crandall, MD of Maplewood, New Jersey and Shelter Island Heights, New York, died on January 31, 2022 of complications of COVID 19. She was 98 years old.
A lifelong Maplewoodian, she was born at Orange Memorial Hospital on September 7, 1923 the daughter of Judge Benjamin Franklin Jones and Mabel Louise Stevens. She attended Tuscan School, Maplewood Junior High and graduated from Columbia High School where she was active in athletics and scouting. From her parents she learned the importance of community involvement and volunteering.
While a freshman at Wellesley College, the bombs dropped on Pearl Harbor. The girls doubled up in the dormitories as the campus was transformed into a training facility for officers shipping out to Europe and the Pacific. Her older brother, Ben, came to visit her before sailing for Europe and impressed upon her that she would be responsible for her mother and elderly aunts if anything happened to him.
Instead of pursuing a career in science, she decided to go to medical school. After graduating from Wellesley she entered Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons as one of 17 women in her class. At P&S she met a returning war veteran in the class behind her, who would become her partner for almost 70 years, Charles Eben Crandall. He borrowed her notes to study. They married at the South Orange
Methodist Church on July 26, 1947. Slightly over one year later, the arrival of their first child required that Elizabeth take a year off. The couple graduated together in the class of 1950. They completed internships at Bellevue Hospital in New York.
Elizabeth returned to Orange Memorial for residency in pediatrics and obstetrics and to Maplewood and the home she grew up in to raise her family.
After completing her training, she worked as a physician for the New Jersey Bell Telephone Company for 10 years. She left industry and went to work for the next 20 years for South Orange- Maplewood School District and as a school physician and eventually as chief for 7 years. She served the same function for Our Lady of Sorrows for 30 years. During this time she also worked for the South Orange Keep Well Clinic. In the mid 1970’s Elizabeth moved into insurance medicine serving for 10 years as Medical Director to the Prudential Insurance Company, the first woman to do so. After leaving Prudential, she worked as Chief Medical Director for American International Group for 6 years and served as consultant to United States Life, Royal Life, Essex Life, Golden Life and American Centurian. After retiring from AIG, she joined the medical staff at Bankers Trust, which functioned as an urgent care for downtown New York and Wall Street.
Elizabeth was committed to her community. She was Maplewood’s representative to the board of Planned Parenthood in the 1950’s and 1960’s where she was instrumental in reorganizing clinical services. She and her husband joined with other physicians to vaccinate the community against polio when the Salk vaccine became available. She joined the Maplewood Recreation Advisory Committee in 1960 and served as chair from 1980-90 during the time the committee was spearheading the effort to build a community pool. Once the pool was a reality, she served 25 years on the Pool Advisory Committee. In the 1970’s when concern about
drug abuse among young people began to surface, Elizabeth became a founding member of the Drug Abuse Committee after which she served on the Family Services and Child Guidance Committee to be sure that children received services from qualified providers.
Her most passionate commitment was the South Mountain YMCA. She also served as a long-term member of the board of the Metropolitan YMCA of the Oranges. In 1983 after returning from a trip to California to help care for her first grand child when her daughter went back to work, it occurred to her that the next generation of two- working parent families were going to need quality child care. She envisioned the YMCA as this resource for her community. Elizabeth threw herself into fund raising to make this a reality.
Liz was a lifelong volunteer with the Girl Scouts, taking her mariner troop on several sailing expeditions. She loved the Eagle Island Camp in Saranac Lake, New York and helped the fund raising effort to keep the camp from being sold for development. She was also active with the Boy Scouts, serving as a health inspector for Essex County and Northern New Jersey Boy Scout Council and providing free physical screening for children who wanted to participate in scouting activities. She also helped the Boy Scout save Camp Glen Gray from development.
Elizabeth was the first woman to serve as the President of the Board of Trustees of the South Orange (now South Orange- Vailsburg) United Methodist Church. She was a member of the Board of Trustees of Winchester Gardens where she was long time chair of the Resident Quality of Life Committee.
She received the Distinguished Service Award from the Maplewood Chamber of Commerce in May 1989, the Maple Leaf Award from the Maplewood Civic Association in April 2010 and she was inducted into the Columbia High School Athletic Hall of Fame in May 2010 as recipient of the Peter Cross Award (along with her husband).
At her summer home, she was involved in the sailing program at the Shelter Island Yacht Club. She was a trustee of the Union Chapel in the Heights.
In 2017, Elizabeth moved into assisted living at Lantern Hill in New Providence where she became involved in resident governance.
Elizabeth was pre-deceased by her husband, Charles Eben Crandall and two sons, David Jones Crandall and Richard Squire Crandall. She is survived by a daughter, Marilyn Crandall Jones, MD of San Diego, the Honorable Charles Steven Crandall of San Luis Obispo, a granddaughter and great- granddaughter of Washington, DC Abigail Elizabeth Jones and Florence Elizabeth Ferullo, a grandson, Warren Stevens Crandall of Los Angeles, and granddaughter, Joanne Elizabeth Crandall of San Francisco. Donations in lieu of flowers may be sent to
1) Peconic Land Trust (Long Island)(www.peconiclandtrust.org)
2) Kennebec Land Trust (Maine) (https://www.tklt.org)
3) Friends of the Great Swamp (New Jersey)
(https://friendsofgreatswamp.org/site/
A celebration of her life is planned for later in the fall when it hopefully will be safer
to gather.

https://essexnewsdaily.com/obituaries/elizabeth-jones-crandall

Obituary: Craig A. Thulen

AUGUSTA – Craig A. Thulen, 76, passed away at his home on May 17, 2021. He was born in Gardiner, Dec. 18, 1944 the son of Ernest and Phyllis Harriman Thulen.

He had great memories of growing up on Northern Ave. in Farmingdale. The whole street was filled with cousins and friends. His cousins, the Gibersons next door, his cousins the Linton boys right down the street, his best friend Rod Myrick next door and the whole rest of the “Northern Ave. crew”. What stories they would tell when they all got together!!

He met his wife, Linda Perkins when they attended Baptist Youth Group in high school and started dating her when she was 16 and began working at his Dad’s restaurant, Ernie’s Drive In. They were married at Winter St. Baptist Church on Jan. 28, 1967. They worked at the Drive in until 1974 when Craig decided he wanted to be able to travel with Linda. They especially liked the mountains and National Parks. They went to the Grand Canyon, Rocky Mt. National Park, Smokey Mt. National Park, Mesa Verdi and others. They camped several years and in 1981 they bought their camp on Three Mile Pond.

Craig loved large family gatherings. He liked to cook Ernie’s burgers and onion rings. Family and friends were very important to him.

He worked at Brewers Dairy and CMP Security but then decided to work full time with Linda doing Thulens Daycare. It started with Brad and Julie and Kelly and Tony and was open for 40 years. What fun he had with the kids. He was very creative and always had a special project going. Having no children of their own, the day care kids were “his kids”. How he loved it when they came back years later to visit and Halloween was always one big reunion! He always put up great pumpkin people displays. All the kids were so special and it would be impossible to name them all. Special thanks to all who came to see him in the last days, he loved you all.

He was an avid Gardiner Tiger football fan and followed Gardiner and Halldale in basketball. He graduated from Halldale in 1965. He loved the Red Sox, Celtics and Patriots. Larry Bird was his favorite. His biggest passion was bass fishing. He loved to fly down the lake in his bass boats. He had special fishing buddies over the years. Jay, Bobby and Eric; cousins Jeff Linton and Kerry Cookson Jr; nephews Jason and Jordan Greenleaf; Mark and Chad Greenleaf and many hours fishing with Ryan and Tyler Hughes. And you ALWAYS had to wear your life jacket!!

He was predeceased by his parents; special cousins Gary Cole, Ricky Goodwin and Peter Giberson; and sister-in-law Elaine Greenleaf.

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Linda; sister Carole Murphy (Peter), sisters-in-law Kathy Perkins (Guy Bates), Anna Garrity and Hilda Michaud, brother-in-law Danny Greenleaf; aunt Peggy Goodwin (Richard); nephews Mark and Jason Greenleaf, nieces Kim Stinson, Katie Allen, Bethany Greenleaf Perez, all so special; and many cousins, great nieces and nephews. Special thanks to Greg and Elaine Thulen and Vicky Niles.

Funeral service to be held Saturday, June 5 at 11 a.m. at Penney Memorial Baptist Church in Augusta, followed by a gathering of family and friends at their home on 12 N. Pearl St.

Arrangements are under the care of Staples Funeral Home, 53 Brunswick Ave., Gardiner, where condolences, memories and photos may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the funeral home website familyfirstfuneralhomes.com

In lieu of flowers,

donations in Craig’s memory may be made to:

Kennebec Land Trust or:

George Mitchell Scholarship Fund

https://www.centralmaine.com/2021/05/27/obituarycraig-a-thulen/

Obituary: George A. Smith

MOUNT VERNON – George A. Smith, of Mount Vernon, died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) on Feb. 12, 2021. George was born on Oct. 15, 1948 to Ezra and Ada Smith of Winthrop. He had many fond memories of growing up in Winthrop and for the last 42 years lived in his beloved community of Mount Vernon.

George is survived by his incredibly devoted wife of 41 years, Linda (Hillier); daughter and son-in-law, Rebekah Smith and Patrick Mellor of Union, son and daughter-in-law, Josh and Kelly Smith of Bridgewater, Mass., and daughter and partner, Hilary Smith and Flavio Sanchez of Washington, D.C. He is also survived by brother and sister-in-law, Gordon and Janet Smith of East Winthrop and sister, Edie Smith of Glenburn.

George was happiest in his role of “Grampy” – whether that meant cheering at soccer games or hanging up art work. George was the proud grandfather of Addison, Vishal, Ada, and Esme as well as uncle to Devon, Erica, Nate, and Ezra. George was the author of four books and innumerable newspaper columns. He wrote about hunting, fishing, current events, and food and travel. George served as the Executive Director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine for 18 years, relentless in his advocacy for the Maine outdoors. His passion for politics was well-known, and over the decades he forged many personal and lasting relationships across the political spectrum. George and Linda loved to travel, especially in Maine. Favorite spots included their cabin at Baxter State Park and West Quoddy Head Lighthouse in Lubec, and they also enjoyed several trips to Italy. George was an insatiable reader – Maine authors were his favorite, of course. He loved singing in the choir at Readfield United Methodist Church, bird watching, and craft beer.

The family would like to give special thanks to the amazing staff at the ALS Association Northern New England Chapter and Beacon Hospice for their outstanding care and support. At this time, the family will hold a private gathering. A public celebration of George’s life may be held post-COVID. Arrangements are in the care of Roberts Funeral Home, 62 Bowdoin Street, Winthrop. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the funeral home website at http://www.familfirstfuneralhomes.com. Friends are asked to honor George by spending time outdoors or supporting the important conservation efforts of The Kennebec Land Trust, P.O. Box 261, Winthrop, ME 04364.

Obituary: Afton “Bud” Berry Gove

WATERVILLE – Afton “Bud” Berry Gove, 92, formerly of Winthrop and one of the old boys from Monmouth Academy, has moved on. Bud left us on Christmas night after a period of declining health.

He was born on Sept.8, 1928, in Monmouth to George Leon and Grace Berry Gove. The attending physician at his birth was Dr. Russell of Leeds. Bud survived the six-man football team at the Academy, working on the Town road crew, running the territory with his chum Arna Blaisdell and traveling to work at Limestone Air Base on his Harley ’74. He was a family man who married Pauline Richardson of North Monmouth on July 2, 1949. They raised three children at the place on Hoyt Brook on the Old Lewiston Road in Winthrop.

Bud served a 39-year hitch with Central Maine Power Company, Stations Department, retiring in 1990. When he was a younger man, he had worked at the textile mill in North Monmouth. Weekends in the fall were spent picking apples with his father-in-law Jesse Richardson on the farm in North Monmouth. He and Pauline took many trips in their retirement, going to Michigan, Nashville, Florida, Charleston, S.C. and the Jack Daniels Distillery, twice.

He was predeceased by his wife Pauline; and two daughters, Audrey Gove and Jerilyn Heath. He is survived by a son Alan Gove and his wife Nancy; grandchildren Lindsay Heath Beesley and her family, Jesse Gove and family, Meghan Gove and family, Nicholas Gove and family, Brett LaPlante and wife Tracy, and Ryal Leon Gove. His memory will live on with Grace Gove at the family camp on Parker Pond.

A graveside service will be held in the spring at Glenside Cemetery in Winthrop. Arrangements are in the care of Roberts Funeral Home, 62 Bowdoin St., Winthrop where condolences to the family may be shared on the obituary page of the website at http://www.familyfirstfuneralhomes.com Those wishing, may make memorial contributions to Kennebec Land Trust P.O. Box 261Winthrop, ME 04364in memory of Afton and Pauline Gove

Obituary: Wesley Merle Hodgkins

FAYETTE: Wesley Merle Hodgkins, Jr., 72, passed away peacefully in the arms of family, on the morning of the autumn equinox, 22 September 2020, after a courageous struggle with cancer.

Wes led an active life, in many circles, but his heart and home were always in Fayette.

A Master Maine Guide, Wes led wilderness canoe trips for several years in the Allagash, and hunting trips in the Oquossoc area before that. Being a guide and running a guiding service was a lifelong dream he felt fortunate to achieve. In recent years, Wes pursued his love for the outdoors in the usual ways — canoeing, fishing, hiking, spending time at camp — and taking his granddaughter on her first hunt on the family land last year.

He was a contra-dancer and a musician, involved with the traditional music revival in the 1970s, where he played music at Starling Hall Grange and welcomed newcomers to the scene. In recent years, Wes continued to play tunes on mandolin, guitar, and piano at home, and to attend area contradances, where he met people with a twinkle in his eye and a warm smile, making newcomers and dance regulars always feel welcome. He created space for people to be themselves.

For many years, Wes practiced tai chi and qigong, ancient arts that combine movement and meditation, attending in recent years advanced training sessions in places as far away as Ibiza, Spain; San Francisco; Washington, DC; and Chicago — and practicing locally at his home and occasionally with a small group in Vienna, Maine, and with his first teacher’s class in Augusta.

Wes was a member and past master of the Starling Hall Grange, a current member of Mill Stream Grange, and a 7th degree member of the Maine State Grange. He loved the Grange as a center of rural community and was glad in recent years to join others at the Mill Stream Grange in Vienna for social occasions. In earlier times, he also served his community for many years as an assistant fire chief in nearby Livermore Falls. He attended University of Maine, majoring in electrical engineering, and he ran a number of businesses, including the popular Tire Barn in Livermore Falls.

Wes loved his home in rural Fayette, where he lived nearly his entire life. He adored the land he explored as a boy even more dearly in his later years. After retiring from guiding, he opened an automotive repair shop at home. His shop saw a steady stream of regular customers, friends, and neighbors, whom he was always glad to help, feeling so lucky to be spending his life doing what he loved, helping others, on the land where he was raised.

He enjoyed gardening and putting up food, going to the frog pond in spring for early sounds of peepers, hearing owls call, and telling stories about his many escapades. Long may those stories and memories live on.

He leaves behind his three children: daughter Heather (Hodgkins) Patterson and her husband Dan of Farmington; son Ryan Hodgkins of Florida; and daughter Rowan (Abby) Labaugh of Augusta; sister Carol (Hodgkins) Millay of Chesterville; two granddaughters, Molly and Audrey; and life companion of several years, Misty Beck. Many cousins, nephews, nieces, and innumerable friends in the local community and the extended traditional music and dance community, wilderness guides, tai chi practitioners, and customers of his shop will all miss his steady, helpful presence.

As Wes wished, there will be no funeral. A memorial celebration will be held at a future date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift in Wes’s name to one of the causes he supported: Down East Friends of the Folk Arts (deffa.org/support-deffa), Kennebec Land Trust (www.tklt.org), or the Friends of Starling Hall (fayettemaine.org/friends-of-starling-hall.html).

Obituary: Diana Brooks

MONMOUTH – Diana Brooks, beloved by her family and deeply mourned, died of natural causes on July 11, 2020 at the age of 107 at her home in Monmouth. As the oldest person in Monmouth, she had been the holder of its Boston Post cane since 2014. She attributed her longevity to a piece of chocolate at lunch and daily afternoon tea.

Born in Grays, Essex, England in 1913, Mrs. Brooks was the daughter of John Aslett and Janet Sarah Fletcher. She attended the Convent School in Grays and subsequently went to boarding school in London at La Sainte Union.

She enjoyed telling stories of her growing-up years. Her first memory was of her father waking her and taking her to a window to witness a German zeppelin going down in flames during World War I. She vividly remembered being rushed to the hospital at the age of 7 in a horse-drawn ambulance after contracting diphtheria. Diana was an avid golfer as a young woman and once played 54 holes in one day. She enjoyed travel with her two close friends, Peggy Wall and Joy Riley, known by all as “the Three Graces.”

After completing a business course, she went to work for Dupont Chemical Company in London. Dupont pulled out of London at the beginning of World War II and Diana transferred to Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) where she met her husband, Malcolm Brooks. During the war she took a watch every week on the roof of ICI’s London office building, manning a fire hose and looking out for incendiary bombs. In 1947 Diana followed her husband Mal to the United States where he had taken a job with ICI in New York. The Brooks family lived in Wilton, Conn.

Over the years, she crossed the Atlantic 25 times, all but a few by boat. She and Mal Brooks became U.S. citizens in 1991. In 2000, following her husband’s death in 1993, Diana and her son, Johnny moved to Maine to be near her daughter, Judy.

Diana was exceptionally adept in the kitchen, and her English specialties, such as roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, veal and ham pie, Victoria sponge cake and Christmas cake, were culinary hits at family occasions. She was also a talented knitter and needleworker who knitted Christmas stockings for all her family and made beautiful needlepoint pillows that grace her living room. She read widely, enjoyed reading aloud to her son, Johnny, and was a master at crossword puzzles. She and her husband Mal were avid gardeners. A highlight for many years for the whole extended family were vacations on Block Island, R.I. with tea in bed with “Gran” in the morning and long idyllic days at the beach.

Diana was devoted to the care and well-being of her son, Johnny Brooks, who has cerebral palsy. She was concerned with the welfare of all children with disabilities and was honored in 1957 by the Easter Seal Society for outstanding service.

She had a friendly and lively interest in everyone and, consequently, was blessed with many long-lasting friendships with people in England and around America. As one granddaughter said, “she was the kind of person you wanted to be around.” She was definitely at her best holding court at afternoon tea where her witty and sarcastic humor shone through! Diana had an extraordinary ability to keep up with the times and to embrace social change. She was deeply open-minded and openhearted.

Diana Brooks is survived by her three children, Carolyn Brooks (Peter Morrin) of Louisville, Ky., Judy Brooks (Steve O’Donnell), of Monmouth, and Johnny Brooks of Monmouth and her stepson, Richard Stotter-Brooks (Elaine) of Bournemouth, England. She is also survived by her four devoted grandchildren, Matthew Morrin (New Orleans), Diana O’Donnell (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Lillian O’Donnell (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Rebecca Morrin (Baltimore, Md.) and her step-grandchildren, Andrew, Tim and Stuart Stotter-Brooks.

The family wishes to extend their heartfelt gratitude to Diane Beasley, Meagan Floyd, Francine Colwell, Vanessa Roy, Debbie Belanger and the many other devoted caregivers who have assisted Diana and Johnny over the years.

Memorial donations may be directed to the

Theater at Monmouth or the Kennebec Land Trust

Rupert Neily III

Executive Director, Theresa Kerchner, shares this remembrance of Rupert:

For those of you who were fortunate enough to be friends with Rupert, you know he was a conservation champion and a roamer. He loved to hike in the backwoods and coast of Maine and often sent along beautiful paintings and poems after his adventures.

 In 2003, Rupert arrived at the downtown Winthrop KLT office door with a request that we drive to Augusta so he could point out his then current passion - conserving Howard Hill! 

 I will hike the Howard Hill trails this weekend and think of Rupert. I am so happy that we could realize his conservation vision.

Tue, 04/28/2020 - 7:30am

Rupert Neily III

Rupert Neily III died in a cabin overlooking Knickerbocker Lake, Boothbay, Maine, on April 27, 2020, lovingly cared for by son Aaron, partner Leslie, and sister Sandy.

Rupert was born on Nov. 15, 1945 in Portland and grew up on Lincoln Street in East Boothbay. He graduated from Boothbay Region High School, where he played basketball and football and was president of his class all four years. He graduated from the University of Maine at Orono, and had a passion for history. During the Vietnam War he served in the Coast Guard, from which he received an honorable discharge as a conscientious objector. He worked for several environmental and conservation organizations in Maine, of which serving as director of the Maine Land Trust Network was closest to his heart.

Rupert’s first and enduring love was the Maine woods, lakes, streams, hills and coast. They were his botanical garden. He avidly explored them on foot, bike and rowing and sailing his beloved Whitehall, his eye ever roaming to an alluring ridgeline. He learned how to find his way in the woods as a boy hunting with his father. He learned how to find spiritual nourishment from the mystery of nature all on his own, most especially during his recovery from a bone marrow transplant from his sister Sandy for leukemia in 1998.

The person Rupert most cherished was his son Aaron, his favorite companion on his favorite row from East Boothbay to South Bristol. Their connection ran deep, as they explored books, films and ideas with meaning for them both.

The Sisterhood — Liz, Sandy, Kathy and Joy — were a major force in Rupert’s life, and they dearly loved their only brother. Rupert saw them individually and collectively as forces of nature. They circled the wagons whenever he needed them, and he was in awe of and devoted to them.

In 2000, he found his “Pownal family,” the Hydes, through Dave and Steve’s Two Roads Maine, which partnered with Chewonki to offer guided wilderness trips as journeys of healing exploration. Steve Hyde became Rupert’s treasured and closest friend.

He met his partner Leslie Bird in 2005 on a ‘’Rupert’s Rambles” hike from Murray Hill Road to Farnham Cove. Leslie had to go on several more rambles before winning him over, but as her grandmother said, “he’s worth pursuing.’’

Rupert was mischievous, loved to trespass, was perplexed by rules and so generally avoided them. He found signs everywhere, layers of meaning unseen by the rest of us. He collected “icons,” things he found in his path, put there for some reason that was his work to figure out. A favorite was a fork flattened by a car tire, which became “the fork in the road.”

Rupert was predeceased by his parents, Elizabeth (Betty “Biz” Bisbee) and Rupert Neily Sr.

He is survived by son Aaron, partner Leslie, sisters Liz, Sandy, Kathy and Joy, their spouses and children, his former wife Ellen, and much to his delight last summer, a newly discovered sister, Anne. He was grateful to his doctor and friend of 22 years, Dr. Scott Schiff-Slater of Hallowell.

Contributions in Rupert’s memory may be made to the Kennebec Land Trust (www.tklt.org) or the Boothbay Region Land Trust (www.bbrlt.org). A time for remembrance will be found in the future.

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.