Milestones

Births

• In Brattleboro (Memorial Hos­pital), May 5, 2013, a son, Maxwell Ezekiel Rago-Marker, to Ellen Rago and Emily Marker of Putney; grandson to Nick and Debbie Rago, and Marcia and Eru Marker.

• In Brattleboro (Memorial Hos­pital), May 3, 2013, a daughter, Khloe Elizabeth Shaink, to Melis­sa (Lance) and Nicholas Shaink of Hinsdale, N.H.; granddaughter to Rock and Robin Shaink, and Bob Lance and Geri Walton, all of Hinsdale, and Jackie and Daw­nald Smith of Waxhaw, N.C.

College news

• The following local students graduated from Champlain College in Burlington on May 4: Melissa Gundry of Vernon received a B.S. degree in Accounting, Brian Kwasnieski of Windham received a B.S. degree in Integrated Studies, Jesston Simon of West Marlboro received a B.S. degree in Game Design, and Joshua Wyckoff of Brattleboro received a B.S. degree in Accounting.

• Ryan Knock of Guilford was among the more than 800 students who graduated from Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C. earlier this month. Knock graduated with a B.S. in Health, Fitness & Recreation.

• Rebeccah Bizon, a corporate communications major from Brookline, graduated from Lycoming College in Willliamsport, Pa. earlier this month. She also was named to the Dean's List for the spring 2013 semester.

• Caleb E. Wiley of South Londonderry was among more than 370 students to graduate from Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa. on May 11. Wiley graduated cum laude with a B.S. in early childhood education and special education.

Awards

• Alex Kennedy, a Wilmington resident and a student at Twin Valley High School, received U.S. Rep Peter Welch's Choice award for her piece, “Self Portrait,” at the 32nd annual Congressional Art Competition for high school students at The Gallery at Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier on May 13. This year's competition featured artwork from 172 Vermont high school students from 39 schools throughout the state. The competition was initiated by then-U.S. Rep. Jim Jeffords in 1981 as a way to celebrate the artistic talent of the nation. The winning artwork from each congressional district throughout the country is displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year.

Obituaries

• Sandra Rob­ertson Amand, 74, formerly of Brattleboro. Died May 6 at Hos­pice and Community Care in Lititz, Pa., fol­lowing a long and courageous bat­tle with cancer. Wife of Nevin Franklin Amand for 34 years. Former wife of the late Basil Berry. Stepmother of Nevin Amand of Ephrata, Pa. Mother of Darcy Shober of Ephrata, Pa., David Berry of Hellam, Pa., and Mark Berry of Lancaster, Pa. Sister of Herbert Robertson of Toledo, Ohio, Stanley Robertson of Hinsdale, N.H., Harold Robertson of Smithfield, Maine, and MaryEllen Wallace of East Hartford, Conn. Born in North Conway, N.H., she was a daughter of the late Wil­bur and Hilma Davis Robertson of Brattleboro. A loving wife, mother, grand­mother and great-grandmother, she enjoyed musical and dance performances, listening to Celtic music and making crafts and ce­ramics. She enjoyed spending time with her family and she will be greatly missed. Memorial information: Services were held at Heisey Funeral Home in Lititz, Pa., with burial in Conestoga Me­morial Cemetery in Lancaster.

• Matthew Bascom, 55, formerly of Burlington and Bellows Falls. Died May 10. For the past nearly 12 years, he had been residing at the Loch Lomond assisted living home in North Concord. Husband of Donna Bascom of Bellows Falls. Father of Lori Lee Bascom of Bellows Falls. Brother of Richard Bascom of St. Albans, James Bascom and his wife, Gail, of Bur­lington, and David Bourbeau and his wife, Chantel, of Blaneville, Que­bec. Born in Portland, Maine, the son of the late Robert and Laurie (Ruel) Bascom, he attend­ed schools in Montreal and Bur­lington. In his early years, Matt excel­led in skiing, tennis, and hockey, and did well in school. In his late teenage years ,though, he started to bat­tle schizophrenia. In the late 1970s, he got mar­ried. In his later years, when the family was separated, he always held his wife and daughter dear. Memorial information: Services were held May 16 at Faith Christian Church in Rockingham. Donations to either Loch Lomond, 700 Willson Rd., North Concord, VT 05858; or to any mental health service in Vermont.

• Stanley P. Buell, 85, of Hinsdale, N.H. Died May 11 at home. Husband of the late Ruth (Wilder) Buell. Father of Sheri Fortune of Hins­dale and Darcy Finnegan of Troy, N.Y. Brother of the late Lois Buell, Cora Perkins, and Esther Lawrence. The son of the late Philip and Esther (Montgomery) Buell, he had been a Hinsdale resident since 1959, previously residing in Brattleboro. He was employed as a printer for Griswold Offset before his retire­ment. He served in the Navy during the Korean War. He was a very talented woodworker, and loved listening to and play­ing bluegrass music. He en­joyed spending time at the family camp that he built in Peru. He was a member of the VFW and the Masons, where recently he re­ceived his 50-year pin. Memorial information: Services will be private. Arrangements under the care of Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home.

• Mortan A. “Mort” Davis, 79, of Wardsboro, formerly of Spofford, N.H., and Brattleboro. Died May 8 at Applewood Care and Rehab Center in Winchester, N.H. following a period of declining health. Husband of June I. Guerin Davis for nearly 62 years. Father of Kathryn Brown and her husband, Dale Sr., and Carol Mackey both of Spofford; Nina McCulloch and her husband, Garry, of Pembroke, N.H.; Mortan A. Davis III of Wardsboro; Verne W. Davis of Colchester; and the late Elsie Davis. Brother of Ella Barber and her husband, Louie, of Ruston, La.; Sr. Shirley Davis, SSJ of Rutland; Bette Parent of Spofford; Elmer Davis Sr. and his wife, Helen, of Spofford; and the late Elsie, Kenneth, Robert, Paul Sr., and Irvin Davis. Born in Brattleboro, the fourth child of Mortan A. and Elsie (Reome) Davis, he was raised and educated in both Wardsboro and Brattleboro. While attending St. Michael's Parochial School, he enjoyed basketball, drama, and choir at the church. There was seldom a time when he was not employed after leaving school early to help his family. He often said that his favorite way to pass the time was running his backhoe during the 30 years that he owned and operated Mort's Artesian Well Drilling based in Spofford. More recently, he was employed at the Recycling Center in Wardsboro, planting flowers and offering small treats to all the townspeople for recycling, especially the children. During his retirement years, he spent many hours keeping his gardens and lawn in beautiful condition. He was a member of the American Legion and Brattleboro Post 5, and the VFW, where he would often share a song and for several years was a volunteer with the Brattleboro Fire Department. Of his leisure time activities he enjoyed visiting with family, singing country music, hunting, fishing, playing horseshoes, softball and cards. He was a skilled ping-pong player. Memorial information: In keeping with his final wishes, there are no formal funeral services scheduled. Committal rites and burial in the Davis family lot in St. Michael's Cemetery will be conducted at a later date. Donations to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105. Arrangements are under the direction of the Atamaniuk Funeral Home.

• Mary Phyllis France, 80, formerly of Brattleboro. Died May 9 at her home in Hobe Sound, Fla., after an extended ill­ness. Wife of the late Joseph Vincent France for nearly 59 years. Mother of Theresa Marie Farrell and her husband, Neil, of Lake Worth, Fla., and Sister Cheryl Ann France, SC, MD, Sister of Charity, of Weston. W.Va. Born in Plattsburg, N.Y., the only child of the late Alan Richmond and Elsie (Danyew) Brackett, she grew up in Brattleboro and graduated from Brattleboro High School in 1951. She then attended the Wil­son School in Boston where she received a certificate in Medical Laboratory Technology, Electrocar­diography, and Radiology Technol­ogy. She enjoyed many happy years of employment in her profession, working for Dr. Alvin Rosenberg in Morristown, N.J., for 22 years and, most recently, for Dr. Francis Murphy in Stuart, Fla. She retired to Florida in 1979, and the activities of travel, enjoyment of family and good friends, golf, gardening, wa­ter aerobics, dressing up, and the social life of Eaglewood at Hobe Sound. She was a past President of the Eaglewood La­dies Golf Association. She was a member of St. Christopher Catholic Church in Hobe Sound and belonged to the monthly Martin County Ladies' Rosary Group. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held on May 13 at St. Christopher Catholic Church in Hobe Sound. Inter­ment for her and her husband, who died on April 13, 2013, will take place at a later date at South Florida National Cemetery in Lake Worth, Fla.

• Madeline E. (Wolfe) Kane, 92, of Bellows Falls. Died May 16 at Springfield Health and Rehabilitation Center. Wife of the late Edward J. Kane. Mother of Mike and Rick Kane of Bellows Falls. Sister of the late Mary (Wolfe) Malley and John Wolfe. Born in Bellows Falls, the daughter of the late Nora (Hogan) and Richard James Wolfe, she graduated third in her class from Bellows Falls High School in 1938 and immediately went to work as an assistant to the Rockingham Town Manager. In 1943, she married and began work as the bookkeeper at Kane's Pharmacy, which the Kanes co-owned with her sister Mary, and her brother-in-law, John J. Malley. She was involved in many community activities, including the UVM Extension Service Home Demonstration Program, the Saxtons River Art Guild, local quilting clubs, and the Rocking­ham Historical Society. She was a lifetime parishioner of St. Charles Church and a member of the Catholic Daugh­ters of America as well as the Holy Rosary Society. Memorial information: A funeral Mass at St. Charles Church in Bellows Falls, with buri­al following in St. Charles Ceme­tery, will be held at a date to be announced. In lieu of flowers, friends may make contributions to the do­nor's favorite charity or simply perform a random act of kind­ness.

• E. James “Jim” Roberts II, 93, of Brattleboro. Died May 9 at The Cove at the Marbella in Naples, Fla. following a brief illness. Husband of Dorothy McCormick Roberts for more than 70 years. Father of E.J Roberts and his wife, Marty, of Vernon. Brother of William “Bill” Roberts and wife, Marguerite, of Hinsdale, N.H., and the late Richard “Dick” Roberts and Oscar “Doc” Roberts. Born in Jacksonville, the son of the late Raymond and Caroline (Begeibing) Roberts. Raised and educated in Jacksonville, he was a graduate of Jacksonville High School and joked that he was in the top 10 of his class, (there were only 10 students in his high school class; he was actually second.) He went on to attend the University of Vermont, graduating in 1940 with a B.S. in Engineering. He proudly displayed that fact on his license plate, UVM 40. While attending college, he met the love of his life, Dorothy. The couple dated for four years and were married while he was serving in the Army. He was stationed in Germany and later in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater during World War II, and was honorably discharged from active service at the rank of captain. The couple settled in Brattleboro after the war, where he established a business selling trailers to area farmers. The business expanded to selling trailers, mobile homes and later modular homes. In 1954, his father's auto dealership, R.S. Roberts of Brattleboro, suffered a major fire and soon after he went to work at the dealership as the general manager, while his wife continued to operate the mobile home business. He also partnered to establish Central Parts, with offices in Brattleboro, Bellows Falls, and St. Albans, plus started R&M Supplies, a body shop supplier with offices in Brattleboro and Glens Falls, N.Y. In 1969, his son E.J. joined the mobile home business which he continued to operate along with his mother Dorothy for many years. Civically, he was active in the Brattleboro Kiwanis Club, of which he was a past president. He was an active member of the Brattleboro Chamber of Commerce from 1946 until the mid 1980s. He was instrumental with the formation and early years of the Brattleboro Development Credit Corp. (BDCC), a driving force in local business financing serving a period as president of the group. In the early 1960s, he was honored as the Chamber's Man of the Year. Additionally, he was an active director of the First Vermont Bank for 35 years. He retired in the late 1980s, but continued to manage his numerous real estate properties from his home in Naples. Throughout his lifetime, he had a passion for golf and played often, winning many rounds and making two holes-in-one. He played regularly as recently as March of this year. Memorial information: A memorial service will be conducted Sunday, June 2, at 2 p.m.. at Centre Congregational Church in Brattleboro. A reception will follow the services in the church's fellowship hall. Interment will be in the family lot in Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery on Orchard Street at a future date. Donations to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, Emergency Department campaign, in care the Development Office, 17 Belmont Ave., Brattleboro, VT 05301. Arrangements are under the direction of the Atamaniuk Funeral Home.

• A memorial musical tribute and potluck for Peter “Dancin' Pete” Ritchie Sherwin, of West Townshend, who died on Nov. 20, 2012 at the age of 74, will be held on Sunday, June 9, at 2 p.m., at the West Townshend Country Store on Route 30. Bring your choice of beverage and a musical instrument.