Obituaries
Editor's note: The Commons will publish brief biographical information for citizens of Windham County and others, on request, as community news, free of charge.
• Susan Marie Herrick Bills, 47, of Brattleboro. Died Aug. 18 at Thompson House in Brattleboro. Daughter of Leonard and Linda (Grant) Herrick of Brattleboro. Former wife of Denny Bills. Mother of Denny Bills, Jr. of Hinsdale, N.H., currently serving in the U.S. Navy; Jessica Bills of Charlestown, N.H.; and JoAnne Bills of Brattleboro. Sister of Sandra Wyckoff of Brattleboro, Sherri Spittle of Sharon, Vt.; and Shelley Cloutier of Danbury, Conn. Graduate of Brattleboro Union High School, Class of 1980. Was a Licensed Nurse Assistant for nine years at Thompson House and at the former Linden Lodge in Brattleboro for 14 years. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held Aug. 25 at First Congregational Church on Western Avenue, with a private interment in the family lot in Oakwood Cemetery. Donations to the Thompson House Activities Fund, 80 Maple Street, Brattleboro, VT 05301.
• Darlene Lois King Hutchins, 62, of Dummerston. Died Aug. 19 at her home. Wife of Jack Hutchins for 39 years. Mother of Lori Wood and husband, Domenic, of Guilford; Tracey Mazelli and husband, Tim, of Brattleboro, and Stacey Eldridge and husband, Dave, of Chesterfield, N.H. Sister of Cheryl Aplin of Brattleboro; Dolores Sylvester, Sheila Lawrence and Clarice Short, all of Dummerston; Norma Ives of South Windsor, Conn.; and Francis Brochu of Manchester, Conn.; Randall King of Vernon; Dennis King of Hinsdale, N.H.; Fred King of Dummerston and Alton King of Putney. Predeceased by siblings Joyce Keeler and Raymond and Reginald King. Attended Brattleboro Union High School. Was a faithful and devoted homemaker whose life centered around her family. Owned and operated her own day care center in Dummerston for several years. Memorial information: A funeral service was held Aug. 24 at the Windham Community Chapel, with burial to follow in Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery. Donations to Bayada Nurses, 23 Marlboro Road, Suite 101, Brattleboro, VT 05301, or to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, 17 Belmont Ave. Brattleboro, VT 05301.Messages of condolence may be sent to Atamaniuk Funeral Home at www.atamaniuk.com.
• Marion Sommers Roche, 77, of Woodstock, Vt. Died Aug. 17 at Woodstock Terraces. Wife of the late Charles Francis Roche. Stepmother of Charles “Doc” Francis Roche III and his wife, Rosemarie, of Murrells Inlet, S.C.; and John Lawrence Roche of West Dover, Vt.; and Deidre M. VanKeuren and her husband, Robert, of Darien, Conn. Sister of Joseph and Richard J. Sommers and Elizabeth Busch. Graduate of Ithaca College and Fairfield University. Taught music in Fairfield, Conn., then Woodstock, Vt. and finally in the Bellows Falls School District retiring in 1993 as music and band director. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held Aug. 21 at Our Lady of the Snows Catholic Church in Woodstock. Donations to the Visiting Nurses & Hospice of Vermont & New Hampshire, 66 Benning Street, West Lebanon, NH 03784.
• Marie Longe Wright, 72, of Westminster West. Died Aug. 18 at home. Wife of Norman E. Wright for 52 years. Mother of Ann Wright of Brattleboro; Mary Jane (MJ) Bentley of Westminster; Debra and husband, Bill Cobb, of Locust Grove, Va.; Cheryl Gould of Bellows Falls, Christine Wright and husband, Sean Long, of Westminster West; Michael Wright and wife, Lisa, of Milton; and Jonathan Wright and wife, Karen, also of Milton. Sister of Hollister Longe of Brattleboro. Graduate of St. Michael's High School in Brattleboro, Class of 1956. Held a number of secretarial and bookkeeping jobs that included the Brattleboro Retreat, Vermont Academy and her husband's real estate appraisal business. Was a 4-H leader and co-founder of the Westminster West Community School. Served as Cemetery Sexton in Westminster West, was a Justice of the Peace, a fire fighter and EMT with the Westminster Fire Department. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held Aug. 23 at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Brattleboro, with burial in Westminster West Cemetery. Donations may be made to Westminster Cares, P.O. Box 312, Westminster, VT 05158 or to the Visiting Nurse and Hospice of Vermont and New Hampshire, 66 Benning Street, West Lebanon, NH 03784. Messages of condolence may be sent to Atamaniuk Funeral Home at www.atamaniuk.com.