College news
• Dominic Italia, a member of the Brattleboro Union High School Class of 2012, received his Doctorate on May 12 from the Creighton University School of Dentistry in Omaha, Nebraska. Dr. Italia will return to Denver, Colorado, where he previously graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Denver, to begin his practice with Englewood Dental Associates.
• Jonathan Griffin of West Townshend, a sophomore majoring in business administration, was named to the spring 2023 Dean's List at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina.
• Ella Bursky of Westminster was named to the spring 2023 Dean's List at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.
• John Peloso of Townshend was recently inducted into Lambda Epsilon Sigma, the honor society at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts. The organization recognizes outstanding juniors and seniors who have demonstrated academic excellence, provided evidence of a thirst for knowledge that goes beyond the classroom, contributed to the intellectual development of the community, and exhibited an ability to communicate effectively.
• Michele Fiorillo of Putney and Abigail Joslyn of Bellows Falls, both students at Castleton University, recently took part in the White Coat Ceremony. Designed in 1993 by The Arnold P. Gold Foundation as a way to welcome new students into the medical profession and to set clear expectations regarding their primary role as physicians, it is an annual tradition that includes the cloaking and recitation of the medical oath by participants and emphasizes the importance of compassionate care as well as scientific proficiency in medicine and nursing.
Obituaries
• Samuel Todd “Sammy B” Barrows, 23, of Marlboro. Died May 11, 2023 from injuries he sustained in a motorcycle accident in Vernon. Sam was born in Brattleboro on Aug. 5, 1999, the son of Heidi Barrows and Lee Sloan. He was raised in Marlboro, where he attended local schools and was a graduate of Brattleboro Union High School, Class of 2017. Sam went on to attend the University of Northwest Ohio in Lima where he studied diesel mechanics. At the time of his death, he was a mechanic for Chesterfield Tire in West Chesterfield, New Hampshire. Previously, he worked for his uncle at Barrows Roofing in Brattleboro. Sam loved working and running large equipment. Sam was very athletic and was very active in intramural and school sports. While attending BUHS, he excelled in football, baseball, basketball, and hockey. He especially enjoyed motorcycles and was proud of the yellow Honda he owned. He also enjoyed spectator sports and was an avid New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox fan. Sam was known for his spirit of friendship and generosity, always willing to help anyone in need. Sam was like an “uncle” to all his friends' children. He will be remembered for his great sense of humor and fearless outlook on life. His immediate family meant the world to him and his presence will be dearly missed. Sam leaves his mother of Marlboro and his father of Vernon; his four siblings, Joey Barrows, Brooke Barrows, Matthew Montgomery, and Connor Montgomery, all of Marlboro; his maternal grandparents, Stephen and Vicky Barrows of Vernon, paternal grandmother Patricia Dunn, and paternal grandfather Sonny Sloan. Other survivors include several cousins, aunts, and uncles that include Alex and Monique Barrows and Josh and Jeannette Barrows of the Brattleboro area. Memorial information: Friends are invited to call at Atamaniuk Funeral Home in Brattleboro on Wednesday, May 24, from 4 to 6 p.m. Graveside committal services will be conducted Thursday, May 25, at 11 a.m., in Meetinghouse Hill Cemetery. A celebration of life will follow at VFW Carl M. Dessaint Post 1034 on Black Mountain Road. Donations to the BUHS Athletic Dept., 131 Fairground Rd., Brattleboro, VT 05301. To share a memory or send condolences to the family, visit www.atamaniuk.com.
• Brenda Lee “BB” Class-Peters, 61, of Brattleboro. Died May 16, 2023 after a long courageous battle fighting cancer. She was surrounded by her family and the love and support of many. Brenda was born in the back seat of a taxi in Hearst, Ontario, Canada on April 30, 1962. Her first few months of life were in Canada, as her parents were stationed there with the U.S. Air Force. She was the daughter of Edward L. Class Sr. and Verga Irene (Towle) Kilanski. Brenda lived in many places including Brunswick, Maine, St. Albans, Vernon, Winchester and West Chesterfield, New Hampshire, and Brattleboro. She was a New England girl through and through. Brenda attended school in Winchester. She was a hard worker who started working at a very young age. Most of her jobs were at places that prided themselves in hospitality. Brenda had a spunky spitfire attitude that made her good at her job. She often became a reason people would frequent the establishments she was working at. Some of the paces Brenda worked included The Putney Inn, The Steak Out, Sportsman's Lounge, The Hollywood, Mike's and, most recently The Marina for the last 26 years. Brenda was also an accomplished seamstress. She was well known for making cloth rabbits with her friend Paula Braun. If you ever visited The Putney Inn in the 1990s, you likely saw them for sale there or as holiday decorations. Brenda could sew anything from wedding dresses to seats for ATVs, snowmobiles, and boats. If you needed something mended or made, she was your girl, a female MacGyver! Besides being a proud workaholic, Brenda was a proud mother, grandmother, and animal lover. She was always rescuing and feeding wildlife. She had a doggie pit stop station (with treats and water) at her house for people walking by. She was always trying to take care of everyone and everything. Besides spending time with her family, work family, customers, and friends, Brenda loved plants. She had an abundance of house plants and flower gardens. One of her most favorite pastimes was to be on the water. She loved spending her days (and evenings) on the Connecticut River - soaking up the sun, jamming out to music, fishing, and just entertaining her friends and family on her boat. She loved to cook and was often in the kitchen whipping up something. Some of her favorite dishes to make were her foot-thick Lasagna, spaghetti and homemade meatballs, and shrimp scampi. Brenda was a people pleaser through and through. She was either making you something, feeding you something, or trying to make you laugh. If you are from the area, you most likely met Brenda at one point or another. She will be missed and loved by many forever. Brenda leaves behind her father Edward L. Class Sr. (Barbara) of Vernon; her sons Tony Whitten (Kelly Boyce) and Wayne Whitten (Megan Barrows) of Brattleboro; grandchildren Jade, Courtney, Ethan, Bryce, and Adalaina Whitten of Brattleboro and Tonysha Whitten of Randolph; siblings Serena Jean Class of Florida, Michael Edward Class (Rhonda) of Brattleboro, and Edward Lee Class Jr. (Brenda) of Vernon; stepmother Dorothy Class and stepsister Robin Zegge of Bratttleboro; three great-grandchildren and many aunts, uncles, cousins, “adopted” kids and grandkids, her Marina family, and countless friends. Brenda was predeceased by her mother Verga Towle Kilanski (John) and many other special people who we know were there to greet her with open arms. Memorial information: A celebration of life will be held at The Marina restaurant on Tuesday, June 13, from 4 to 7 p.m.
• Claudia J. Giese, 71, of Westminster. Died suddenly on May 9, 2023 in Farmington Connecticut. Claudia was born Aug. 15, 1951 in Chicago to Clarence and Alberta Giese. At the age of 7, she moved with her parents to Vienna, Austria, and attended local schools there. After Claudia graduated high school, she went on to study foreign language interpretation at the University of Vienna. In 1973, Claudia and her brother moved to California, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in English from Santa Clara University. Claudia moved to Boston in 1977 and then eventually settled in Vermont where she worked for a travel agency in Brattleboro and Springfield. In 1985, at her parent's home in Guilford, she married Matthew Conklin. Claudia was a big reader, mostly non-fiction, and was an active gardener. She loved the outdoors, going for daily walks with her friends. She also loved her cats Topsey and Turvey, who were special to her. Claudia also was an expert in Sudoku, enjoyed classical music, and put up with Matt's rock and roll. Claudia's other interests included being active in Westminster Cares as a volunteer for Meals on Wheels. She loved traveling to Italy, Britain, Australia, and all over the U.S. Claudia's love for her family and all the experiences with her parents and siblings were extraordinary and beautiful. Claudia is survived by her husband; and sisters Ericka Stever of Weehawken, New Jersey and Sarah Giese of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Claudia was predeceased by her parents and her brother Ben Giese. Memorial information: A funeral service took place on May 19 at the First Congregational Church of Westminster. Donations to Westminster Cares, P.O. Box 312, Westminster, VT 05158.
• John “Jack” Greene, 90, of Brookline. Died peacefully at Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend on May 12, 2023. His wife Sherry was at his side. His entire family - daughter Rachel, son Bob, grandsons Emmett Larson and Fynn Greene, granddaughters Greta Larson and Paisley Barr, granddaughter-in-law Caitlin Larson, and great-grandchildren Evelyn Rose Larson and Hudson Barr visited him and spent special time with him over the prior week. On Dec. 26, 1932, Jack was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the second son of Martin and Jeanne Greene. Jack was “Jack” or “Jackie” his entire life, except when Mom was perturbed. Then he was “John William.” He roamed the halls of Our Lady of Sorrows Grammar School, Holy Trinity High School, and Hartford High School and graduated in 1950. After high school, Jack joined the Navy and served in the Air Branch, on land and at sea. He was discharged in October 1953. After a series of “what do I want to be when I grow up” jobs, he attended the University of Connecticut, graduating in 1960. He worked at both the Hartford Insurance Group and Aetna Life and Casualty in Hartford until his retirement. Jack and Sherry moved to Miami, Florida for her work in 1991. Jack got into pottery, was named president of the Ceramic League of Miami, and became an accomplished potter there. After living in South Florida for 15 years and surviving a harrowing experience with Hurricane Andrew, he and Sherry eventually moved back to New England to be near their children and grandchildren. They built a great post and beam home (that he designed) in Brookline in 2000 on Grassy Brook Road. Their gardens were the talk of the town - full of flowers, a memorial garden, and beautiful trees. These gardens were all Jack's creations. They were also his and Sherry's work for 19 years, too. They sold their dream home in 2019. As a special note: Jack met his best friend and fishing buddy Al Ober at UConn. They spent a good part of the next 41 years prowling the trout streams and lakes of New England and Canada - and occasionally catching fish, too! Jack had a great sense of humor and a wry whimsical side. This was evident in his creative tinkering (Sherry said he could fix anything) and his artistic forays into pottery, woodturning, glass beading, and marble making. He also loved to play low stakes poker with his Vermont poker buddies. And in Jack's words, and in true fashion, “Nuff said...RIP.” Memorial information: There will be no memorial service. His life was celebrated by his loving family and close friends while he was in Hospice at Grace Cottage. Any donations in his memory can be made to either Grace Cottage Hospital or to the Windham County Humane Society.
• Jean Marie Ostrowski, 96, of North Walpole, New Hampshire. Died on May 15, 2023 at Springfield Hospital. She was born on December 18, 1926, the third in a family of eight children from Gageville, and the daughter of Marguerite Harrington and R.L. Gay Sr. In 1961, Jean married Edward Stanley Ostrowski of North Walpole, where they resided with Edward's dad John Bartholemew Ostrowski. In 1963, Jean gave birth to John “Jack” Ostrowski in Bellows Falls. Her family included Jack and Lisa Ostrowski, their daughter Jenna Marie and Matthew Blanchard, and son Joshua and Cristina Ostrowski; along with son Ryan Ostrowski and granddaughter Siena Maria Ostrowski. She is also survived by brothers Robert Gay II and Richard Gay from Gageville, and sister-in-law Janice Gay. Jean was predeceased by sisters Nancy (John) Sullivan, Anne (John) Curtin, Helen (Jim) Hurley, Gloria (Chuck) Quinn, and Gilbert Gay. Jean had the joyful blessing of several nieces and nephews. Jean graduated from Bellows Falls High School in 1944 and went to work for Gay's Express, H.P. Hood, and worked with her brothers at Gay's Fuel Service for over 25 years as their first secretary. She enjoyed her work there. Jean loved to keep up her large garden with Edward and his dad as well as cook for her family at their home in North Walpole. Many meals of venison, fresh trout, asparagus, homegrown vegetables, and pies were prepared by Jean. She was greatly loved and will be missed by her family. Memorial information: A funeral Mass was held on May 18 at St. Peter's Church in North Walpole, with burial at St. Peter's Cemetery in Drewsville.
• Sandra Jean “Sandy” (Coughlin) Woodward, 80, of West Brattleboro. Died at home on March 31, 2023. Born on Aug. 27, 1942, she grew up in Brattleboro and graduated from Brattleboro Union High School in 1961. She worked at Eden Park Nursing Home, and loved cooking, playing cards, doing puzzle books, and watching John Wayne movies. She was a loving and caring woman who put others ahead of herself. She was a great listener who was loved by many. If you needed something, she would give it to you if she had it and you needed it. Sandy was predeceased by her parents, Maxine A. and John H. Coughlin Sr.; her sister, Anita Marie Parent and her son, Anthony Wayne Woodward. Sandy is survived by her son, Willard Elmer Woodward Jr. of Brattleboro, Vermont; her daughter, Ava-Maria Monette, and son-in-law, Ernest J. Monette of Florida; her brother John “Jack” Coughlin of Brattleboro; and brother-in-law Richard “Dick” Parent of Hinsdale. She leaves behind many nieces, nephews, and cousins, as well as two grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. Memorial information: A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.
Services
• A celebration of life for Ed Druke, Sr., who died on Feb. 8, 2023, will be held Saturday, June 3, from noon to 3 p.m., at NewBrook Fire House, 698 Vermont Route 30, Newfane. There will be a brief welcome from family, followed by shared food and time for family and friends to celebrate Ed's remarkable 91 years.