Obituaries.

Morbid or not, I find it really interesting to read peoples' obituaries. It's like reading a mini-biography, summed up in around 300 words.

All of these are taken from one day in one newspaper.

• Kenneth Robert Clegg, 59
   
  Growing up, Nicole Clegg knew that if she wanted to have a debate with her father, Kenneth Clegg, she had better be prepared. "He loved challenging discussion. Dad was my first trainer at answering difficult questions," said Nicole Clegg, who is now a lobbyist living in Portland.
   
  Mr. Clegg, a well-known Sanford lawyer who lived in Portland, died Saturday at age 59. A gifted writer and speaker, Mr. Clegg spent most of his legal career in the courtroom as a litigator.
   
  "He liked to defend people," said his daughter. "He had such convictions about what was right and wrong. He was a big believer in fairness and justice." It was this sense of justice that prompted Clegg to take on the representation of several men who were victims of sexual abuse by members of the Catholic clergy.
   
  "I think the hardest part (of those cases) was that there was so much pain associated with that," his daughter said.
   
  Mr. Clegg liked to say he was an old-fashioned kind of lawyer who preferred gentlemanly conduct in the courtroom. He had no patience for shows like "Law & Order" or for Court TV. "He had this great charm when he went into the courtroom," said Clegg. "He was very warm and easygoing."
   
  Mr. Clegg shared his love of the law at the University of Maine School of Law, where he taught from 1977 to 1980. When not in the courtroom, Mr. Clegg was an outdoorsman and athlete who enjoyed long-distance cycling, often logging 60 miles in a single day and never missing the Trek Across Maine.
   
  He was also a lover of good food, and it was not unusual for meals to last hours in the Clegg house. Mr. Clegg often wrote beautiful toasts to begin meals, welcoming friends that he really counted as family. Mr. Clegg also believed it was never too late to learn something new. At age 40, he joined his children in learning how to play a musical instrument.
   
  A lover of classical music, Mr. Clegg learned the cello. During his early lessons, Mr. Clegg drew some looks when it became apparent he was three times as old as some fellow students. But he kept at it and learned how to play beautifully, said Nicole Clegg.
   
  In addition to his four children, Mr. Clegg is survived by his wife of 34 years, Mimi Clegg. "They were the love of each other's life," said Nicole Clegg. "When he saw her, he was done. He spent the rest of his life taking care of her."
   
  A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, with a reception at the Clegg home to follow.
  Donations can be made to the Ken Clegg Bicycle Scholarship, a fund for aspiring Maine athletes, c/o Key Bank, 1 Canal Plaza, Portland, ME 04101. Donations may also be made to the Kenneth Clegg Adult Music Scholarship Award, c/o the Portland Conservatory of Music, 116 Free St., Portland, ME 04101.
   
  - Jen Fish

Another for the same man:

• Kenneth Robert Clegg, 59, passed away Saturday, Nov. 8, 2003.
   
  He is survived by his wife of 34 years, Mimi; children, Nicole, Justine and her husband, Peter, Sebastian and Whitney; mother, Evelyn; brothers, Michael, Denis and Scott; and grandson, Aidan.
   
  Born May 1, 1944 in Pasadena, Calif., Ken, an avid athlete, was captain of the football, basketball and track teams for Davis High School and was selected for California's all-state football.
   
  Diploma in hand, Ken began a lifelong pursuit to see the world. For the next year he traveled throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia and ended in France, where he worked as a newsboy in the streets of Paris.
   
  Returning home, he moved east to attend Brown University and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in English. Afterwards, he enlisted in VISTA as a volunteer and worked in the Southeast Bronx as a community organizer. Ken and his fellow volunteers became fast friends and these relationships formed his extended family and led him to his most important relationship of his life- his wife, Mimi.
   
  Ken met Mimi in San Francisco and was immediately taken with this dynamic woman. They married less then a year later in Modesto, Calif., while Ken attended law school at Hastings College of Law, graduating first in his class. After graduation, Ken, Mimi and their daughter, Nicole moved to North Turner, where Ken clerked for Chief Justice Dufresne and welcomed the fourth member of the Clegg family, Justine.
   
  Returning to California to practice law, Ken, worked in the litigation department at Morrison & Foerster. After the birth of their son, Sebastian, Ken and Mimi returned to Maine to raise their children, adding another daughter, Whitney, and lived in an old farmhouse in Gorham for the next twenty years.
   
  Ken taught as an Associate Professor at the University of Maine School of Law from 1977-1980 and then returned to practicing law with Ron Bourque at Bourque & Clegg in Sanford. Ken was active in the Maine Bar Association and served as Treasurer on the Maine Board of Bar Examiners,
   
  Aside from a passion for the law, Ken was a talented writer and blessed his family and friends with letters, stories and toasts that touched their hearts. A natural athlete, he loved long distance cycling and spent weekends riding throughout Southern Maine, never missing the Trek Across Maine. If not on the roads, he spent his summers hoisting the sails in the Casco Bay or on Sebago Lake.
   
  A lover of food, he was a founding member of the Gourmet Club and for over twenty years shared stories and many laughs over long meals with good friends. As an adult, he found an outlet for his passion for music and he studied the cello. He later played with a local group of musicians.
   
  A universally talented man, Ken's first thought was always of his family and he loved with a generosity unparalleled by others. He was adored by his wife, children and friends and will be sorely missed. He will live in the hearts of many. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, November 13 at 11 a.m. at St. Luke's Episcopal Church with a reception at the Clegg home to follow.
   
  ' Music is the wine that fills the cup of silence.' - Robert Fripp
   
  Arrangements are by Jones, Rich & Hutchins Funeral Home.

• Warren Hubert Pressley, Jr., 80
   
   
  BUXTON - Warren Hubert Pressley Jr. 'Bud' - Warren Hubert Pressley Jr., 80, of Mary Jane Road, died Nov. 6, 2003.
   
  He was born to Warren H. and Effie Pressley in Haynesville, Maine on June 25, 1923. He married the love of his life, the former Marion A. Deering, during his flight cadet training at Elkins, West Virginia, in 1943.
   
  He was a graduate of Ricker Classical Institute in Houlton; a graduate of the University of Maine, Orono and earned a Master's of Education degree at Columbia University. He was a fine athlete and loved to compete. He was a basketball and baseball player at Ricker, a pitcher for a minor league baseball team in the early 1940's in Portland; loved to ski, water ski, play golf, fish, hunt and trap. He was a World War II pilot, flight instructor and test pilot in the Lone Eagle Squadron of the Army Air Corps.
   
  Warren Pressley was recognized for his innovative and progressive educational spirit. His career as an educator started as a Principal and math teacher on North Haven Island. He served as Principal at Piscataquis Community High School in Guilford. He moved to Massachusetts to be Principal of Ipswich High School and later served as Principal of King Philip Regional High School in Wrentham, Mass. In the mid sixties he returned to his beloved home state as Superintendent of Schools in Greenville. He completed his public education service as Superintendent of schools in SAD #6. His interest and work with the developmentally disabled lead him to serve as Director the South Shores Community Developmental Center in Chester, Nova Scotia from 1977-1988. During this time he and his beloved wife, Marion served as houseparents for many of the children placed at Bonny Lee Farm.
   
  Bud Pressley loved people. He enjoyed every opportunity to exchange stories and will be remembered for his enthusiastic story telling. He loved Maine and his home in Buxton. And as he would always say ' it's all Buxton.'
   
  He was preceded in death by his wife of 59 years, Marion D. Pressley and his younger sister, Jean P. North of Brattleboro, Vt.
   
  He is survived by his older sister, Verna Lee Pressley Whittmann and her husband Ret. Admiral Narvin Whittmann, Shelburne, Vt.; brother-in-law, John Alden North of Brattleboro, Vt.; sister-in-law, Alta Deering Somerville of Houlton: brother-in-law, Alston Deering of Orient; his cousin, Tessa Martel MarcAurelle of Peabody, Mass.; his son and two daughters, Warren H. Pressley III and his wife Kathy of Buxton, Lee Ann Pressley of Saco, Mary Jane Fay and her husband Joe Lovelady of Corpus Christi, Texas; five grandchildren, Benjamin Fay of Pacific Beach, Calif., Molly Fay of Encinitas, Calif.; Todd Narvin Pressley and his wife, Jill and their daughters, Aidee Jane and Emma Rose Marion of Bayview, Calif.; Seth Warren Pressley and his wife Yuka of Pacifica, Calif. and Jacob Thompson Pressley and his wife Meagan of Hillsboro, N.C.; four step-grandchildren, Melissa Matthews of South Portland and her sons, Travis, Cameron and Noah, Dr. Mark Matthews of Atlanta, Ga., Kevin Matthews of Worchester, Mass., Michael Lovelady and his wife Mindy of Tel Aviv, Israel.
   
  A memorial service will be held at a later date.
   
  Arrangements are by Dennett-Craig and Pate Funeral Home, Buxton.

• William 'Bill' E. Kelly, 80
   
  LINCOLN - William 'Bill' E. Kelly, 80, died on Nov. 7, 2003, at his home on Clover Hill.
   
  During his recent illness he was lovingly cared for by his soul mate and wife of 58 years, Elizabeth Jane (Weatherbee) Kelly, and their children.
   
  He was born in South Lincoln, August 30, 1923, the son of Gordon Kelly and Eva (Delano) Kelly. Bill was talented, with a sharp wit, a flair for poetry and the harmonica; and a gift for problem solving.
   
  After graduating from Mattanawcook Academy, he studied engineering and appraisal. He worked as an engineer for Stone & Webster; Supt. of the Raymond Fish Hatchery; an HUD appraiser for 25 years; and consultant for Lincoln's Revitalization Project. He had his own business, Kelly's Consulting and Appraisal Service.
   
  Bill was a member of the 1st U.S. Marine Division, receiving a Purple Heart for his valor in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was a life member of the Marine Corps League and the Disabled Veterans and a 50-year member of the Masons.
   
  He loved his community and was an active member of the Lincoln Congregational Church and the Lincoln Historical Society.
   
  Bill felt most at home in the Maine woods. He was an avid, accomplished fisherman, hunter, and trapper who exemplified the ideal outdoorsman. Above all else, Bill was a dedicated family man to whom there was no greater joy than spending time with his family, especially his darling wife, 'Bett.'
   
  Along with his wife he is survived by son, Robert and wife, Suzanne; daughter, Diana Hurd and husband, Doug; son, Albert and wife, Brenda; daughter, Leisa Savage and husband, Earl; grandchildren, Don Hurd and wife, Kate, Kris and wife, Lindsey, Kate and husband, Lincoln, William George, Alexandra, David, Leiana, Linai and Traci Grillion and husband, Joey, and their children, Drew and Lauri; his brother, Eugene and wife, Ardel; and his sister, Dora and their families. 'Grampy's' family will miss him beyond measure and will always remember the wonderful moments they spent together at 111 Main Street and Clover Hill.
   
  Funeral services were held at 10 a.m. Monday at the Lincoln Congregational Church, with the Rev. Darrell Joiner officiating. A reception followed immediately after the service at the social room of the church. A private interment will be held later at the Lincoln Cemetery.

• Michaela Rae Gaetjens, 10
   
  Michaela Rae Gaetjens, 10, daughter of Ray and Theresa Vermette Gaetjens of Limerick, died peacefully Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2003, at her home. She bravely fought mitochondrial disease all her life; it finally took over all her body systems, and she has gone to Heaven to be with her Papa and her God, where she will sing and dance with the angels.
   
  Michaela loved school, and she attended Waterboro Elementary School through third grade. Her one-on-one educational technicians, Stacy Jette and Vicky
   
  Anderson, made it possible for her to be included in as many activities as possible. She especially loved going to the library and her lively music classes.
   
  During the summer, Michaela attended Camp Laughing Loon with her in-home supports. She loved all the activity of her typically developing peers; her
   
  favorite part was Camp Sing. Michaela truly enjoyed being outside; the deck at her home was her favorite place to be after school, reading and listening to music.
   
  Michaela's favorite books usually had lots of rhyming. She loved all of the Froggy series, On the Day You Were Born, Giraffes Can't Dance, The Little Band, and Oink, Moo, How Do You Do? Her favorite singers included Raffi, Rick Charette, Amy Grant, Tony Bennett, and Kathie Lee Gifford. But her most special tapes were those made by her Aunt Mary; they were listened to for many hours at home, on the way to appointments, in the ambulance, and in the hospital. They provided great comfort to her.
   
  Michaela was involved in fundraising for the Maine Center for the Blind, the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, and the Jason Program. She went on
   
  her Make-a-Wish trip in April, 2001, to Key Largo, Fla., with her family and friend, Jessica. She played with the dolphins at Island Dolphin Care for five days and loved every minute of it. In Michaela's short life, she affected many people.
   
  Besides her parents of Limerick, Michaela will be missed by her brother, Remington Paul Gaetjens; her sister, Riley Victoria Martinez Gaetjens; her Mimi, Elaine Vermette, and Aunt Nancy King, all of Limerick; her Grampa Paul and Gramma Lu Gaetjens of Los Alamos, NM; her special Unky, Kevin Vermette and Aunt Kerry Vermette and Ellen, Jill, Thomas and Isaiah, all of Alfred; Aunt Victoria, Uncle Brian, and Jackson Cabral, of Portsmouth, RI; Uncle Dominic, Aunt Cynthia, Jenna, Nicole, and Anastasia Vermette; Aunt Mary, Uncle Josh, Aleah, Lunara, and Josie Graham, all of Limerick; Aunt Mari and Madison Gaetjens and Uncle John Gaetjens of Los Alamos, NM; and Uncle Paul Gaetjens of Albuquerque, NM. She also leaves her special nurse, Shannon White, and special friend, Taylor Prendergast, who took care of her for many years through the progression of her disease. Many other friends, relatives, caregivers, and therapists will miss her sense of humor, smile, and beautiful spirit.
   
  Visiting hours will be Wednesday, Nov. 12, from 2-4 and 6- 8 p.m. at Heald Funeral Home, 580 Main Street, Springvale.
   
  A Celebration of Life Mass will be held Friday, Nov. 14, at 10 a.m. at St. Matthew's Catholic Church in Limerick. Interment will be private.

• Russel J. Ross, 59
   
  CAPE ELIZABETH - Russel J. Ross, 59, of Cape Elizabeth, formerly of Andover, Mass., died unexpectedly on Nov. 9, 2003.
   
  He was born in Houlton, the son of Arnold P. and Ruth V. (Hutchinson) Ross. He grew up on a potato farm in Littleton, where he attended a one-room school. He graduated from Houlton High School in 1961, from the University of Maine in 1969, with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, and from Northeastern University in 1975, with a Master of Science in Environmental Engineering.
   
  He was licensed as a Professional Engineer in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. He was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Boston Society of Civil Engineers, and a Fellow in the American Academy of Environmental Engineering.
   
  He worked for Camp Dresser and McKee Inc., an environmental engineering firm in Cambridge, Mass., for thirty-five years, retiring as a Vice President in May, 2003. He was involved in many water and waste treatment projects throughout New England, notably Boston, Mass.; Portland, Maine; Concord, N.H.; Barrington, R.I.; and most recently, the Walnut Hill Water Treatment Plant in Marlborough, Mass.
   
  He was a renowned joke teller, especially ones requiring a Down East accent. He reveled in passionate discussions of the state of the economy, politics, religion, philosophy, and the Red Sox vs. the Yankees. He was an avid reader, an enthusiastic movie goer, and a terrible speller. Most of all, he loved, and lovingly cared for, his family, his friends, and his home.
   
  He is survived by his wife of thirty-four years, Joan M. (Emery) Ross of Cape Elizabeth; son, Arnold P. Ross II of Lawrence, Mass.; brother, Larry P. Ross of Houlton; sister, Mary and her husband Cecil Ryder of Yarmouth; and in-laws, Mary M. Emery and Susan J. Emery of Bangor, Frederick C. Emery, Jr. and Carolyn J. Mowers of Cape Elizabeth, James C. Emery of Northampton, Mass., David M. Emery of Freeport; several nieces, nephews, and cousins, and many friends.

• Donald Fontaine, 56
   
  LEWISTON - Donald Fontaine, 56, died November 9, 2003 at 24 Old Lisbon Rd. in Lewiston.
   
  He is predeceased by his parents, Joe and Arlene Fontaine.
   
  He is survived by his half sisters, Elaine (Jordan) Williamson and Barbara Jordan; uncles, Tom, Bill and Harry Lawrence.
   
  He will be sadly missed and was a 'great polly-wog buddie'.

Overwhelming response!

i gotta go to work bob

Originally posted by Poop Man Bob

Overwhelming response!

Sorry man, too much to read, ecspecially about dead people...

"Morbid or not, I find it really interesting to read peoples' obituaries."

totally.....we really need to hang out and get drunk....

Originally posted by mental invalid

"Morbid or not, I find it really interesting to read peoples' obituaries."

 

 

 

 

totally.....we really need to hang out and get drunk....

Holler when you're back down souf, as I don't have any immediate plans for going above the Mason-Dixon Line.

Michaela's favorite books usually had lots of rhyming. She loved all of the Froggy series, On the Day You Were Born, Giraffes Can't Dance, The Little Band, and Oink, Moo, How Do You Do? Her favorite singers included Raffi, Rick Charette, Amy Grant, Tony Bennett, and Kathie Lee Gifford. But her most special tapes were those made by her Aunt Mary; they were listened to for many hours at home, on the way to appointments, in the ambulance, and in the hospital. They provided great comfort to her.

im thinking collage....burroughs style....rip all the obituaries out of the paper, and randomly start placing them down....one on top of the other, until you have your universal life and death story....