Darienite (https://darienite.com/category/obituaries/page/60)
Death notices for Darienites, immediate relatives and others of interest to town residents
Franklin P. Bates, 90, husband of the late Lois L. Bates, passed away peacefully on Aug. 1, in the comfort of his home in Darien. Born on Nov. 14, 1928 in Stamford, he was the son of the late Walter A. and Jessie Pierce Bates, and a lifelong resident of Darien. Franklin served as a Seabee in the U.S. Navy from 1949-1953 in Cuba and North Africa.
Robert (“Bob”) Paul Sullivan died peacefully, with his beloved wife Marylou and family by his side at his home in Darien, on Aug. 2 after a three-year battle with brain cancer. Born in 1958 in Woburn, Massachusetts to Richard and Margaret Sullivan, Bob was the second of five Sullivan boys. The first in his family to attend college, Bob graduated from Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts in 1981 and joined PricewaterhouseCoopers in Boston. He would spend his entire 36-year professional career with the firm.
Audrey Noel Valentzas passed away peacefully at home on July 10, surrounded by her children. She was 85. Audrey was beautiful, loving, compassionate, adventurous, funny and an inspiration to everyone who knew her. Born on Dec. 11, 1933 to Bert and Sylvia Soderblom, she grew up in Altadena, California and honored her Scandinavian roots by dancing at Swedish picnics and festivals across the state.
Judith “Judy” Garland Bruce of Newtown Square, Pennsylvania and Castine, Maine, passed away on July 28. She was the beloved wife, best friend and partner for 60 years to her husband, Robert J. Bruce, and the devoted mother of Kimberley Bruce Campbell (Chris) and Scott Garland Bruce (Gigi); grandmother to seven grandchildren and great-grandmother to four great-grandchildren, who affectionately referred to her as “Mame.” Born in Somerville, Massachusetts, July 6, 1936 to Stuart and Muriel Garland, Judy spent her early years in North Attleboro, Massachusetts and her teenage years in Darien. Summers growing up were spent with her family at West Island on Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. — an obituary from Stretch Funeral Home
A 1958 graduate of Colby College, she met her husband, Bob, at Colby and remained an active alumna and supporter of the college throughout her life, establishing with her husband an endowed scholarship fund at the college.
Nancy Lee Coleman passed away peacefully, surrounded by her family, on a picture perfect summer’s day, July 1. She was 66. She was born March 28, 1953 at Scripps Hospital in La Jolla, California. She was the eldest daughter of Skeets and Lee Coleman. Along with her younger brother and sister, she was raised in Del Mar and Playa del Rey in Southern California before moving with her family to Darien during her teen years.
Barbara May Hokanson Aymar, 93, a former Darien resident, passed away on June 28, 2019. She was born June 27, 1926 in Everett, Washington, the youngest of 11 siblings (including her identical twin sister Patricia). Her parents, Erik and Bina Hokanson, were Swedish immigrants who arrived in the United States at the turn of the 20th century. Barbara went to Queen Anne High School and the University of Washington, where she studied art and design. She and her sister were best friends and moved to San Francisco together after college, where she enjoyed a career as a successful executive assistant.
Marguerite Mary Froelich Ade, 88 , born September 19, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois – Died July 11, 2019 in John’s Creek, Georgia. Marguerite was raised in the Chicago area. Her father was Robert J. Froelich, her mother was Margaret Mary Barry Froelich. She earned an associate’s degree from Thornton Junior College. Then, as a young single woman, she worked as the office manager at the Harvey, Illinois YMCA.
Jean Louise Venezio, 93, a longtime resident of Stamford and Darien, passed away peacefully in her home on Thursday, July 25. Jean was born in Stamford on Sept. 16, 1925, daughter of the late William and Anna Picker Moran. Jean started her career in the early 1950s as a clerk typist with General Electric, having retired at age 65. She was a longtime choir member at St.
Carol Elizabeth Pippitt Henkel of Sarasota, Florida died peacefully July 24, 2019 at Sunnyside Village after dealing with Parkinson’s disease for more than 24 years. Born in 1934, she was the daughter of Samuel Allen and Katherine (Laird) Pippitt. She grew up in Short Hills, New Jersey, where at 16 she met 17-year old Steve Henkel. She attended Mount Holyoke College for three years, and after her marriage graduated in 1956 from Barnard College of Columbia University with a degree in economics. Shortly thereafter, she and her husband bought their first sailboat, and both instantly fell in love with being “at sea.”
Tina T. Deverill, a resident of Keene, New Hampshire for the past 20 years, passed away July 24, 2019 from pancreatic cancer. She was 73. Born in Greenwich on March 30, 1946, she was the youngest daughter of Joseph J. Turek and Agnes K. Turek. She graduated in 1964 from Greenwich High School and went to work at CBS Laboratories as an executive secretary to the vice president. In 1969 she met her husband, Robert A. Deverill, who had taken a summer job before returning to college.
John Bernard McKenna, a longtime resident of Darien and Stamford and parishioner of St. John’s Roman Catholic Church, passed away on July 25, 2019, at the age of 93. Born Oct. 22, 1925, in Stamford, he was the son of James Edward McKenna of Montgomery, New York and Bridget Gorman McKenna of Ballinamuck, County Longford, Ireland. He spent his early childhood years on a small family farm on Den Road in North Stamford, attended the Bangall School (Stamford’s last one-room schoolhouse), and graduated from Stamford High School in 1943.
Isebell S. Chamberlain, a longtime resident of Stamford, passed away peacefully at her home on July 19. She was 91. Isebell was born on Aug. 24, 1927, in Worcester, Massachusetts, to the late Gustav and Elin Swenson. Isebell’s greatest love in life besides her family, was teaching.
Joyce D. Nicoletti, age 89, a longtime resident of Vista, New York, died peacefully Monday July 22, 2019 in Norwalk Hospital. Born in Darien, Aug. 9, 1930 she was the daughter of the late Frank and Elizabeth DePhillips Treglia. Joyce was predeceased by her husband Richard in 1985. Joyce was an active member of the Lewisboro seniors and a volunteer at Norwalk Hospital.
Richard Conrad Weber, age 95, passed peacefully from this life into the next on July 22, 2019. Born in the Bronx, New York on April 28, 1924, Richard raised his family and worked in the town he loved, Darien. Richard served his country in the Army Air Forces in World War II, attending Officers Training School at Ohio State University. He then came home to start a family and worked in the family business at Christman Furniture for 42 years before retiring and moving to Roswell, Georgia with his second wife, Joan, to live out his years near his son and family. His last years were spent in assisted care in Virginia and then Wisconsin to be closer to his daughter.
Tamara Nielsen Whittier passed away peacefully in her sleep at home on July 20. She was 58. “Tami” was born on March 27, 1961 in Greenwich to the late Gerald Nielsen Sr. and Joanne Tammany Nielsen of Darien. She was a life-long resident of Darien, where she developed her love of the beach and the ocean. After attending the Convent of the Sacred Heart in Greenwich she went on to graduate from Darien High School in 1979 and attended Dean College in Franklin, Massachusetts and Wesley College in Dove, Delaware.