Obituaries
• Nancy J. Burbank, 65, of Townshend. Died July 25 at home. Wife of John H. Burbank for 33 years. Mother of Melissa Burbank-Gonzalez and her husband, David Gonzalez, of Dover, N.H., and the late Mark Dennis Shuey. Stepmother of Patricia Burbank Lloyd of Audenried, Pa., Sandra Burbank Zarek of Cheshire, Mass., and the late Yvonne Burbank Hudson. Born in Montpelier, the daughter of Helen (Seckington) and the late William Dillon, she was raised in Brattleboro and graduated from Brattleboro Union High School in 1965. She worked for many years as a telephone customer service representative at the Edge Company and received many awards for her outstanding service to customers. Memorial information: A service will be held to celebrate her life at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Brattleboro on Saturday Aug. 4, 2012 at noon. Following the service, there will be a reception at a site to be determined later. Donations to the Grace Cottage Hospital's Messenger Valley Pharmacy renovation and expansion fund, in care of the Grace Cottage Foundation, P.O. Box 1, Townshend, VT 05353.
• Robert “Robb” T. Cross, 61, of Brattleboro. Died July 21 of cancer. Son of Arthur and Helen (Talmadge) Cross. Father of Jason T. Cross and Jesse Cross-Nickerson. Brother of Edward Cross. Significant other of Doris Severinghaus. He was an accomplished sailor and enjoyed sailing “Limin,” his own boat, and spending time with his boating friends in Rhode Island. He was a NASCAR enthusiast, racing his own cars in his younger days. He also played guitar in rock and blues bands throughout his life. He loved vacationing in the Caribbean, Bob Marley, and a good rum cocktail. The company of his family and many friends gave him great joy. Memorial information: A celebration of his life was held July 28 at his home. Donations to the Nicholas G. Giamartino Scholarship Fund, in care of Brattleboro Union High School, 131 Fairground Road, Brattleboro, VT 05301, and the Oncology Department at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 17 Belmont Ave., Brattleboro, VT 05301. Condolences may be sent to Atamaniuk Funeral Home at www.atamaniuk.com.
• Albert Ernest Johnson, 69, of West Dover. Died June 20 in Franklin, Tenn. Son of the late Ernest Albert and Lea Marie Kanerva Johnson. Former husband of Sharon Johnson. Brother of Ron Johnson. He was an insurance agent and served in the Army in Vietnam. Memorial information: Graveside services with military honors were held July 28 at Spring Hill Memorial Park. Donations to Windham County Humane Society, P.O. Box 397, Brattleboro, VT 05302.
• Lana Warner Palumbo, 75, of Durham, N.C., formerly of Wilmington. Died July 25 at her home following a long illness. Mother of Andrew Palumbo and his wife, Kristina, of Durham. Born in Bangor, Maine, the daughter of the late Gordon Chase Warner and Hazel Thorne Warner. She was a direct descendant of Andrew Warner, who in 1636 was a founder of Hartford, Conn., with the Rev. Thomas Hooker. She graduated from Smith College in 1959 with a Bachelor of Science degree. Following graduation, she spent four years as a research biologist at Yale. In 1963, she spent her first winter in Vermont and relocated permanently in 1964 running the Handle House Inn. During a period that encompassed nearly four decades, starting in 1968, she was involved with Art on the Mountain, serving as chairwoman for several years. She was also a member of the board of the Deerfield Valley Health Center Volunteers, and her organizational skills were important to the extraordinary financial success of that project. She was Administrative Assistant for the town of Wilmington as well as a Lister, serving the town faithfully from 1991 until 2008, when she moved to Durham to be closer to her grandchildren. She was an avid reader, and prided herself on regular completion of the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle. Most of all, she enjoyed many special times with friends and family, in Durham, Tucson, and Wilmington. Memorial information: A service to celebrate her life will be held on Saturday, Aug. 18, at 10 a.m., at Our Lady of Fatima Church in Wilmington, with burial to follow in Riverview Cemetery. Donations to UNC Hospice, P.O. Box 1077, Pittsboro, NC 27312, or UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, External Affairs Office, UNC-CH CB 7295, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7295.
• Dorothy Elizabeth “Dot” Parenchuck, 91, formerly of Brattleboro. Died July 26 at Maplewood Nursing Home in Westmoreland, N.H. Wife of the late Chester W. Parenchuck for 60 years. Mother of Rose Noel of Dracut, Mass, Carol Nason of Groton, Mass, Dawn Whitney of Richmond, N.H., and Donna Foster of Orange, Mass. Sister of George, Donald, Richard, and Everett Field, Jr., Rose Fate, and Florence Geso. Stepsister of Wendell Cook. Born in Hinsdale, N.H., the daughter of the late Everett and Eveline (Stewart) Field, she graduated from Hinsdale High School, Class of 1939. She had been a former resident of Orange and Brattleboro, and prior to becoming a patient at Maplewood, she made her home with her daughter, Dawn, in Richmond, N.H. She had been employed at the former Erving Paper Mill in Erving, Mass. and Georgia Pacific Paper Mill in Brattleboro, where she retired from in 1986. Previously, she had worked for N.D. Cass Toys in Athol, Mass. She had attended St. Mary's Catholic Church in Orange. She enjoyed ceramics, knitting, and bowling. She also cherished time spent with her family, especially her grandchildren. Memorial information: A funeral services was held July 31 at Atamaniuk Funeral Home in Brattleboro, with burial in Pine Grove Cemetery in Hinsdale, where she was laid to rest next to her husband. Donations to Maplewood Nursing Home, 201 River Rd., Westmoreland, NH 03467.
• Jeffrey L. Sheehan, 27, of Weston. Died July 19 at the Rutland Regional Medical Center. Son of George and Marianne Carroll of Weston. Brother of April Brown of Chester; Amber Hubner and her husband, Jason, of Putney, Erin Carroll of Weston, Patricia Carroll of Ft. Myers, Fla, and Christian Carroll of Miami, Fla. Born in Brattleboro, he attended Flood Brook Elementary School in Londonderry and graduated from Burr & Burton Academy, Class of 2006. He was employed at the Vermont Country Store in Weston. He enjoyed landscaping and did odd jobs for many people in the town of Weston. He was also assistant sexton at the Old Parish Church. He loved life, loved people, and was an advocate for his friends with disabilities. He loved playing video games, enjoyed comedy, and was an avid fan of the Red Sox and the Patriots. He also enjoyed swimming, hiking, kayaking, yoga, horseback riding, skiing, snowshoeing, cooking and fishing, and he loved animals. Memorial information: A memorial service will be celebrated on Sunday, Aug. 5, at 2 p.m., at the Old Parish Church in Weston. Donations to the Old Parish Church, P.O. Box 125, Weston, VT 05161, or to Lincoln Street Global Campus, 374 River St., Springfield, VT 05156.
• Christine Alison (Rice) Soule, 43, of Sanford, Maine, formerly of Rockingham. Died July 22 at the Gosnell Memorial Hospice House. Mother of Kelsey and Jensen Doiron of Sanford. Sister of Howard Rice Jr. of Falmouth, Mass., Rebecca Thompson of Richmond, and Amy Sciacca of Westminster. Born in Rockingham, daughter of Howard and Donna (Nims) Rice, she graduated from Bellows Falls Union High School and received a Bachelor of Music degree from Keene State College. Music brought her joy and she spread that love of music throughout her life. She moved to Maine in 1992, and began teaching piano lessons, both privately and through Sanford Community Adult Education. She also served as Sanford High School Marching Band Assistant and Color Guard Instructor for six years. Her true passion was working with children, and she was proud of her 10 years as a teacher at St. Thomas School and her four years at Wells Elementary School. She was a compassionate person and spent time working with others through both Home Instead Senior Care and Waban, Inc. She spent many summers working for the Sanford Recreation Department and for the past nine years had volunteered tireless hours as a coach, board member, registrar, and VP through the Sanford Soccer Association. Her most important and beloved job was raising her two girls. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held July 25, at St. Therèse of Lisieux Parish, Holy Family Church, in Sanford, with interment on July 26 at the New Westminster Cemetery. Donations to Safe Haven Humane Society, 1616 Post Rd., Wells, ME 04090.
College news
• Casey A. DeMarsico of Newfane and Beth E. Honsaker of Putney both received first honors on the Clark University Dean's List for the Spring 2012 semester. Adam P. Boyle of Brattleboro and Daphne L. Kinney-Landis of Guilford received second honors.
• Ashley Morgan, a junior majoring in chemical engineering, from West Townshend, and William Parker of Guilford, a freshman majoring in mechanical engineering, both were named to the Dean's List at Worcester Polytechnic Institute for the Spring 2012 semester.
• Nicole Daniels, a junior majoring in chemistry and political science from Brattleboro, was named to the Dean's List at Hartwick College for the Spring 2012 semester.
• Benjamin Harwood of Brattleboro was named to the Dean's List at Tufts University for the Spring 2012 semester.
School news
• Elise Huntley, a homeschooled student from Wilmington, recently received a bronze medal in State University of New York at Oswego's second annual GENIUS (Global Environmental Issues - U.S.) Olympiad, a global high school science, art, creative writing, and design competition focused on the environment. Huntley presented a science project titled “Are Macroinvertebrates Vermont Strong? Monitoring One Stream's Recovery and Water Quality after Tropical Storm Irene and Investigating the Conventional Belief that Flooding and Stream Dredging Have an Inverse Impact on the Overall Health of a Stream” during an exhibition in the college's Campus Center arena at the GENIUS finals.