College news
• Kristina Wittler of South Newfane, a physics major and member of the Class of 2019, has earned the spring 2016 Dean's Award for Academic Excellence at Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y.
Military news
• Specialist Michael Mannhaupt of Wilmington, a member of the 1182nd Forward Support Company of the the New York Army National Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, successfully completed a training exercise at the Army's Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La. More than 5,000 soldiers from more than 30 states participated in the training, which featured more than 10 days of offensive and defensive missions in the post's maneuver areas against a real opposing force.
School news
• The following local students were among the 480 who graduated from the nine Governor's Institutes of Vermont held this summer: Ali Fox, Lylah Hakimoglu, Madison Joy, Dakotah Luebbert, Mikala Weinziel, and John Donovan of Bellows Falls; Julia Belyung, Morgan Brook-deBock, Eliot Franz-Holmes, Rhys Glennon, Olivia Howe, Liam Kennedy, Tyler Morton, Gabriel Potcher, Meara-Anne Seery, and Thomas Szpila of Brattleboro; Pooja Meyer of Guilford; Corynn Wasyliko of Londonderry; Trevor Wood, Zachary Dodge, and Fairen Stark of Newfane; Colin Costa-Walsh, Jack Langeloh, Nicholas Mitchell, Skye Rhomberg, and Madden Sullivan of Putney; Simon Bupp-Chickering, Ethan Lauricella, and Zoe Schemm of Saxtons River; Danelle Dezendorf and Karson Petty of Townshend; Silas Holmes of Wardsboro; Nolen Donovan and Maureen Hughes of Westminster; and Kai Ling Boyd and Olivia Genella of Wilmington.
Transitions
• Retired Brattleboro Police Chief Gene Wrinn of Guilford has joined Youth Services' Board of Directors. Joining the force in 1987, Wrinn spent years in Brattleboro Police Department's patrol division before he moved to the Detective Division, which he supervised. In 2007, he was appointed Chief of Police, where he remained until retiring in 2014, receiving recognition for his work rebuilding positive relations with the community. After leaving the police department, Wrinn worked out of the Windham Country States' Attorney Office developing the county's pre-trial monitoring program, which was eventually moved into Youth Services, and he followed. The program screens for the presence of substance abuse or mental health issues to inform the criminal justice system about whether alternative paths at rehabilitation might be more effective than the traditional criminal justice system. In August 2015, Wrinn accepted a full time position as a social worker at the Vermont Department for Children and Families, where he presently conducts investigations of reports of abuse and neglect incidents involving children.
Obituaries
• John H. Boulton, 75, of Westminster. Died Aug. 2 at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. Born in Milford, Conn., on Oct. 28, 1940, the son of Howard and Hazel (Chapin) Boulton. He was a 1958 graduate of Milford High School, served in the Navy, and worked for Bullard in Bridgeport, Conn., and AVCO (later known as Textron), retiring in 1998. He enjoyed collecting bottles and later became an avid buyer and seller of bottles. He also enjoyed going antiquing. He loved his wife and granddaughters and his cats and chickens. He loved Vermont and New Hampshire, spending his final years there. In 1960, he married Barbara Feulner who survives. He is predeceased by his parents and his daughter, Tracey Lee Lajeunesse. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Services will be held at a later date to be announced. Arrangements are in the care of Fenton & Hennessey Funeral Home of Bellows Falls.
• Mitchell A. Ellison, 60, of Brookline. Died July 30. He was born in Brattleboro on July 21, 1956, the son of Murray and Leora (Howe) Ellison. He was a graduate of Brattleboro UnionHigh School and worked as a carpenter. He loved his family and his work. He is survived by his sons Myles Ellison of Ridgewood, N.Y., and Mitchell Ellison II of Pittsburgh, Pa.; his girlfriend, Michelle Cassidy; his stepdaughter Emily Solomon of Brattleboro; his brothers Mathew, Morgan, Chris, and Mark Ellison; his sister Marjorie Ellison; his grandchildren Lucas and Alexis Ellison and Kamar Ausby. He is predeceased by his parents, his wife Bonnie, and his brother Michael. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Services will be held at the convenience of the family.
• Dorothy Putnam Helyar, 91, of Brattleboro. Died July 28 at Pine Heights Nursing Home. Prior to being admitted to Pine Heights, she was a resident at Bradley House. Born in Brattleboro on Oct. 30, 1924, the daughter of James and Dorothy (Prouty) Helyar. She was raised in Brattleboro, attending public schools and was a graduate of Brattleboro High School, Class of 1942. She went on to attend the former Hesser Business College, then located in Brattleboro. She worked most of her career as a secretary for several insurance companies in the Manchester, N.H. and Brattleboro areas. She was a member of First Congregational Church in West Brattleboro and, for several years, was a volunteer at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital's coffee shop. She enjoyed travel, gardening, and time spent with her sorority friends and her family, especially her nieces. Survivors include one brother, Frank Helyar and his wife Frances of North Falmouth, MA and six nieces as well as her extended family at Bradley House. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: There are no formal funeral services scheduled. She will be buried next to her parents in Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery on Orchard Street. Donations to the Bradley House, 65 Harris Ave., Brattleboro, VT 05301. To sign an online register book or send messages of condolence to her family, visit www.atamaniuk.com.
• June Barnes (Hood) Jenness, 90, of Hinsdale, N.H. Died July 7 at Cheshire Medical Center in Keene N.H. Born on March 15, 1926 to Robert Chrystie and Beatrice Moore in Springfield, Mass, she was educated at Brattleboro High School. In 1943, she married Richard S. Hood Sr. Their marriage ended after 20 years, but they remained neighbors and friends until his death in 2014. In 1967, she married Warren (Bud) Jenness of South Newfane. They remained married until his death in 1977. She was extremely proud of all the veterans in her family: both husbands, three sons, two grandsons and one great-grandson. She enjoyed vacationing in South Portland, Maine, near the ocean watching the seagulls. She thoroughly enjoyed working for many years as an overnight house parent at the Austine School for the Deaf. She sewed quilts for her children and grandchildren while keeping a watchful eye on her charges at Austine. She resided at the Applewood Nursing Home in Winchester N.H., for the past five years where she roomed with her best friend, Mary Struthers. She had a feisty spirit, once hitting professional wrestler Killer Kowalski with her handbag after he defeated her favorite wrestler. Some of her favorite pastimes were canning vegetables and baking pies. She relaxed by listening to country music and Red Sox games on the radio. She enjoyed receiving visitors right up to the end, including a visit by one of her sons with her 2-year-old great-great-grandson two days before her death. When the 2 year old climbed up into her lap and said, “I love you, Grammie,” she was truly at peace. She is survived by her six children: Michael and wife Irene of Pelham, N.H.; Richard and his wife, Donna, of Hinsdale; Thomas of Hinsdale; Robert of Hinsdale; Andrew and his wife, Holly, of Connecticut; and Debra of New York. She also leaves 15 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, and eight great-great-grandchildren. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Graveside committal services will be at 11 a.m. on Aug. 20 in the Williamsville New Cemetery on Depot Road in Williamsville.
• Nicole Kidder, 50, of Lake Havasu City, Ariz., formerly of Bellows Falls. Died July 9. Born in Bellows Falls on March 24, 1966, the daughter of Germaine Brodeur Romano and the late Romey J. Romano, she was a soulmate, best friend, and an excellent stepmother. She had an adventurous spirit and loved to travel. She was generous and put others needs before her own. She especially loved her family and her two stepchildren. She will be forever missed by those who loved and believed in her. She is survived by her husband, Ken Kidder; two stepchildren, Katherine Kidder-Ruffenach and husband Blake Ruffenach in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Thomas Kidder in Lake Havasu City, and siblings Angele Romano, Selena Garrison, and Romey Romagnoli. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: An open house gathering was held Aug. 6 at the pavilion at the Bellows Falls Recreation Center.
• Harold “Mitch” Mitchell, 71, of West Brattleboro. Died July 28. He was born in St. Albans on July 26, 1945, the son of the late Denver and Freida (McClaren) Mitchell. He was a lifelong Brattleboro resident. He was educated in the Brattleboro school system, graduating from Brattleboro Union High School, Class of 1965. He worked as the cemetery sexton at Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery and as a funeral assistant at Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home for many years. He was well known in the Brattleboro community. He loved to work and stay busy and was always willing to lend a hand. He enjoyed people and loved to socialize with everyone he came in contact with. He will forever be missed by those who knew him. He is survived by his wife, Andrea Mitchell; a daughter, Michele Wood and her husband, Steve, of West Brattleboro; a son, Michael Mitchell of Northfield, Mass.; a brother, Leonard Mitchell and his wife Darlene of West Brattleboro; and by two granddaughters and a step-grandson, A.J. Blais. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A funeral service was held Aug. 3 at Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home in Brattleboro, with burial in Locust Ridge Cemetery in Brattleboro. Donations to West River Valley Vet Services, 720 VT 30, Newfane, VT 05345 or Rescue, Inc., 541 Canal St, Brattleboro, VT 05301. Condolences may be offered at www.kerwesterlund.com.
• Alma Adelaide Dunklee Mankowsky, 91, of Vernon. Died July 13 at Vernon Green Nursing Home, where she had been a resident for the past year and a half. Born on Aug. 23, 1924, daughter of the late Warren B. and Mildred (Lackey) Dunklee, she was a 1942 graduate of Brattleboro High School, where she was valedictorian. She also attended Westbrook Junior College in Westbrook, Maine. In 1947, she was married to Leon C. Mankowsky in Turners Falls, Mass. She was office assistant for Dr. Wilton Dean in Northfield, Mass., and also worked New England Box Company in Greenfield, Mass. and Franklin County Technical School in Turners Falls. She enjoyed volunteering in the gift shop at the former Farren Memorial Hospital in Turners Falls as well as the Thrift Shop in Greenfield. She was very talented when it came to sewing and arts and crafts, and she especially enjoyed ceramics. She made many items for her family members which they will cherish. She was very involved in the 4-H and Camp Waubanong. She loved to play the piano and banjo, and enjoyed dancing and camping on Cape Cod. Always devoted to her family, she spent many hours at the bedside of her daughter Jean in Boston for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. She kept in touch with her 1942 classmates and enjoyed many reunions with them. She and her husband traveled to Florida often and made many friends along the way, including some of Leon's military buddies. She leaves a son, Dennis and his wife, Mary Ann, of Erving, Mass.; a brother, Alfred Dunklee of Vernon; and a sister, Martha LaMoria of Newfane. She was predeceased by her husband, her daughter, Jean, and a sister, Ruth. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: Burial will be in the Tyler Cemetery, along with the ashes of her daughter, in the plot next to her father and mother.
• Nathalie “Nat” E. Nelson, 87, of Brattleboro. Died July 27 at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital. Born to Archie and Margaret Boyd on Feb. 27, 1929, she was raised in Wilmington, where she met her husband of 65 years, Lawrence “Larry” W. Nelson. The two were childhood sweethearts and graduated one year apart from each other at Wilmington High School. She went on to study for one year at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. She had a beautiful voice fit for opera singing, and made several records with her vocal coach Mr. Scarpetti in Chelsea, Mass. Her artistic accomplishments reached beyond the record player to the television screen in later years. She was a leading star of “Miss Jean's Romper Room,” a popular Boston-area children's television show. She worked behind the scenes of the show, which aired beginning in the late 1950s on WHDH. Her career in Boston also included a short stay at the Veterans Affairs Office at Northeastern University. Additionally, she dedicated many years to the South Boston Army Base, which was used to warehouse and distribute military supplies during World War II. While she started a family with her husband in Arlington, Mass., the couple yearned to return to Vermont's countryside to raise their children. They bought a home in West Brattleboro, where they established the family-owned scientific glassblowing business, Vitri-Forms, Inc., in the basement in 1961. Larry honed the skills he had acquired as a glassblower at Boston's Massachusetts Institute of Technology, while Nathalie wore many hats, taking on a wide range of tasks instrumental to the business' growth. She also started Vitri-Arts, working as a self-taught, decorative glass artist. She enjoyed exhibiting at community events, such as the Deerfield Valley Fair, where she showed fair-goers how to make jewelry, cocktail stirrers, and miniature vases. In the last few months of her life, she continued to lend a hand to her daughter, Heather Nelson, who today is the president of Vitri-Forms. She attributed her longevity to the love of her children and her desire to stay active in the business, in whatever way possible. She loved nature and all animals, some of whom she'd feed from her porch and others of whom she welcomed into her home as her children. She loved to garden and cook, including her family's favorites of blueberry buckle, chocolate cake, and Swedish meatballs. She loved ice skating on the pond below her home and tracking new snowmobile trails in Vermont's woods. She loved watching her children play sports and never missed a game. She was also an avid Red Sox fan and kept score cards with the team's mascot, Wally, at her side. She was a loving and selfless spirit who always did for her family and others. She never gave up when times were tough and wasn't afraid to speak her mind. Her smile and laugh were contagious and always accompanied by a twinkle in her eye. She is survived by her husband and four daughters, their spouses and partners, Debbie (Nelson) Dandrea and Donald Dandrea Jr., of Brattleboro; Robin (Nelson) Syms and Rob Syms, of Westmoreland, N.H.; Heather Nelson and Lisa Stagner, of Halifax; and Heidi Nelson and Abby Molina, of Westminster. She is also survived by five granchildren and nine great-grandchildren. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A celebration of life with family and friends will be held on Saturday, Aug. 13, from 1 to 4 p.m., at 724 Thomas Hill Rd., Halifax. Donations to Windham County Humane Society, P.O. Box 391, Brattleboro, VT 05302.
• Sally Ann Tenney, 57, of Brattleboro. Died July 25, following a sudden illness. Born in Brattleboro on Sept. 14, 1958, the daughter of the late Carl Alexander and Joanne Elizabeth “Betty” Tenney, she graduated from Brattleboro Union High School in 1976. She received training as a nurse's aide, working at Linden Lodge. Her work experience in the Brattleboro area included Mama Peduzzi's, Via Condotti, Hon Dynasty, Elliot Street Grocery and, most recently, Price Chopper. In 2002, she married Tim Fosburgh in Brattleboro. She always put family first and enjoyed all of the holiday gatherings with aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews. She enjoyed life and laughed often. She knew how to connect with people and to make them immediately feel welcome. She loved to cook and made the best lasagna on the planet. Both Tim and Sally loved spending time together on the coast of Maine, particularly enjoying the sun and sand at Ogunquit Beach. She opened her heart to so many people who were fortunate enough to be enveloped by her kindness, compassion, and fierce loyalty. She will be dearly missed. She is survived by her husband; two brothers, Carl Andrew Tenney and his wife, Sheri, of Manassas, Va., and Shawn Eric Tenney and his wife, Tina, of South Burlington. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: A celebration of her life was held Aug. 6 at Ker-Westerlund Funeral Home in Brattleboro, with burial in Spofford Village Cemetery in Chesterfield, N.H. Donations to Rescue Inc., 541 Canal St, Brattleboro, VT 05301.
• Kenneth Willis Sr., 84, of Wilmington. Died July 30. Formerly from Long Island, N.Y., he was a talented builder of many homes and restaurants. He served in the Navy for four years. He is survived by his only son, Kenneth Jr. and his wife, Angela, his brother Bill and sister Bette; two grandchildren and a host of nieces and nephews. His kindness and generosity touched many in the community. May he rest in everlasting peace. MEMORIAL INFORMATION: None provided.