Hudson - Litchfield News | February 24, 2012 - 11


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Sunday Worship Services- 9:00am - Contemporary Service •11:00 am - Traditional Service


The first Sunday of the month at 11am is a combined Communion Service (No 9:00am service)


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FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF HUDSON 236 Central St., Hudson, NH 882-6116


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Obituary Obituaries


Richard Walter Hamel died suddenly, but peacefully, at


his Litchfield home on February 11, 2012. Born September 7, 1940, in Lawrence, MA, Richard was a proud graduate of the Central Catholic High School Class of 1958. (He delighted in receiving his Golden Diploma at his 50th reunion several years ago.) He grew up in Lawrence where he met and married his wife, Kay, and worked at Greico Bros in Lawrence for the entirety of his career. In 1984, he moved with his family to Salem, and later to Litchfield after his retirement. Richard was a life-long member of the Knights of Columbus, and was an


active and committed member of his parish community wherever he lived, notably at his current church, St. Francis of Assisi in Litchfield. His faith in God and Church, and his love and devotion for his wife and family defined and enriched his life. Like many from his generation, he was a frugal and hard-working man, and though he never aspired to have or achieve wealth or acclaim of any sort, he counted himself bountifully rich in what he valued and cherished most: his family. Richard had a close circle of friends, especially from among his church community and his home community. He enjoyed playing cards with family and friends, especially playing his current favorite, Texas Hold-em, where he could buy-in for $5 or $10 and win $25 or more on a lucky night. He especially loved to play cards on nights like those.


Sunday School 10:00AM “Christianity for the rest of us”


259 Charles Bancroft Highway (Rt. 3A), Litchfield, NH Rev. Stephen Quinlan, Pastor 424-6057


Richard Walter Hamel Richard’s surviving family includes his wife, Kay, with


whom he celebrated in health and gratitude, 50 years of marriage on November 11, 2011. He is also survived by his son, David and his wife Janet of Bristow, OK, and their children, Stephen and Kevin; daughter, Debbie and grandchildren, Blaise, Bradley, and Donna of Salisbury, MA; son, Michael and his wife Betsy, and grandchildren, Austin and Allison of Salem; daughter, Julie and her husband Dick Bernier, and their daughter, Katie of Pepperell, MA; and son, Jim, and his wife Jude and their children, Eden and Forest of Sanbornton. Richard is additionally survived by his nine siblings: Doris Alakel, Yvette Richards, Raymond Hamel, Roland Hamel, Fr. Joseph Hamel, M.M., Albert Hamel, Paul Hamel, Terry Waggett, and Roger Hamel. His grandson, Aaron Hamel, predeceased him. Richard lived a virtuous, industrious, happy, and spirit- filled life. By every important measure, he lived life beautifully well - perhaps his only real failing, leaving it too early. He had a heart of gold, and will be deeply missed, and always loved. Services were held in the Dumont-Sullivan Funeral Home in Hudson and St. Francis of Assisi Church in Litchfield. Burial was in Edgewood Cemetery, Nashua. Those wishing to make gestures of remembrance and thanksgiving for Richard’s life are invited to send donations in his memory to Catholic Charities of New Hampshire (www.nh-cc.org/how-you-can-help.aspx) or St. Francis of Assisi Church in Litchfield. To send an online message of condolence to the family, please visit www.dumontsullivan.com.


Gerard ‘Jerry’ L. Viens


Gerard “Jerry” L. Viens, 89, a longtime resident of Hudson, died on February 19, 2012, at the Hunt Community in Nashua. Mr. Viens was born November 12, 1922, in Quebec, Canada, son of the late Adelard and Levanie (Melancon) Viens. He is predeceased by his wife, Medora (Lefebvre) Viens in 1989. Jerry moved to Hudson at a young age and worked on his uncle’s farm. He


enlisted in the Army and served for three years as a rifleman and sergeant in France during World War II. He was awarded the Purple Heart for his service at the Battle of the Bulge. After the war, he owned and operated a dairy farm in Hudson, was a forklift operator for Anheuser Busch in Merrimack for 20 years, and worked for the Hudson Public Works Department. He loved his black pug, Susie, and enjoyed his John Deere tractor, working on his house, his garage, the lawn, and talking with his friends at his favorite diner.


Jerry was


a member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the Catholic War Veterans Post 1749, the Disabled American Veterans, and the American Legion Post 48 Hudson. He was a longtime parishioner of St. Kathryn Parish in Hudson. He is survived by his two sons, Leonard Viens and his wife Jill Sieveking of Manchester, and Normand Viens and his wife Linda Govone of Framingham, MA; his brothers, Tony Viens, Maurice Viens and his wife Carol all of New Hampshire; sisters-in-law, Rita Viens and Priscilla Viens, both of Hudson, and Winnie Viens of Staten Island, NY; as well as many nieces, nephews, and cousins. He is also survived by his dear friend, Dolores Foley of Arizona. A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, February 24, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Kathryn Parish, 4 Dracut Road, Hudson. All may meet at church. Burial will be will be in St. Francis Cemetery in Nashua. The Dumont-Sullivan Funeral Home in Hudson is in


charge of arrangements. To send an online message of condolence to the family please visit www.dumontsullivan. com.


Linda J. (Popp) Cranston


Linda J. (Popp) Cranston, born August 8, 1944, passed away on February 15, 2012, from complications after surgery. Linda was a loving mom, sister


and grandmother. She enjoyed crocheting, knitting and family. She lived in California most of her life and about four years ago moved to New


Hampshire to be near her daughter. Linda is survived by her daughter, Valerie (Cranston) Small and her husband Eddie of Hudson; a son William “Billy” Cranston and his


wife Wendy from Reno, NV; three grandsons, Dustin, Danny and Bobby; a granddaughter, Kellee; and a sister, Barbara (Popp) Baker and her husband Clark; nephews, nieces and cousins. Ricker Funeral Homes and Crematory of Lebanon will handle cremation. Linda’s family will hold a Memorial Service at Glenhaven Memorial Park in San Fernando, CA, at a date to be determined.


Condolences can be shared with the family through an on line guest book by visiting www.rickerfuneralhome.com.


In the novice division comprised of fifth and sixth graders, Marc Boomhower displays his hardware for coming in second place in the 110-weight class


by Matt Graveline (117) and David Gandia in the 64-pound weight class. Off the wrestling mats, a virtual sea of red-shirted volunteers was the reason the


PUBLIC NOTICES Town of Hudson


Notice of Public Hearing Cable Television Franchise Renewal


The Hudson Board of Selectmen will hold a public hearing in response to a request by Comcast, the current cable operator, for a cable television franchise renewal agreement. This hearing will be held March 6, 2012, at 7:00 p.m., at the Hudson Town Hall, 12 School Street, Hudson, NH, in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room. This hearing will be held pursuant to the requirements of the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1934, as amended; and RSA 53-C:3-a.


The town is required by NH law to consider the ability of the applicant to: (I) Meet its financial obligations to perform; (II) Provide adequate and technically sound facilities, equipment and signal quality; (III) Provide adequate channel capacity and appropriate facilities for public, educational, or governmental use, taking into account available technology, subscriber interest, and cost; (IV) Prohibit discrimination among customers of basic service; (V) Provide reasonable service quality in terms of available technology, subscriber interest, and cost; (VI) Construct and install cable-related equipment which conforms to all applicable state and federal laws and regulations and the National Electric Safety Code; (VII) Provide a competent staff able to provide prompt, adequate service and to respond comprehensively to customer complaints or problems; and (VIII) Provide reasonable rules and policies for line extensions and disconnects, customer deposits, and billing practices.


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event went as smoothly as it did. From assistant coaches to parents of wrestlers to Campbell High varsity wrestling coaches Bob and Tom Gannon, their collective efforts and time made the event a raging success. While also wearing the hats of the elementary and middle school teams’ coach, Callinan’s pre-eminent role for this event was monetarily oriented. As president of the “wrestling boosters club” (Friends of Litchfield Wrestling) it is Callinan’s objective to raise money that will fund the high school wrestling team. Additionally, their fundraising activities go towards covering coach’s salaries, the cost of uniforms, as well as other operating expenses. Without a single dollar coming from the high school, the Cougar wrestlers’ existence is dependent upon the fund raising efforts of the Friends of Litchfield Wrestling. As such, countless hours of volunteer help goes into the program on a continuous basis, as evidenced by the dedication that made Sunday’s concession operation such a success during the daylong event. Through the brief existence of youth wrestling in Litchfield, which Callinan jokingly recounts starting in his basement with a few charter members some five years ago, the program has quickly emerged into an effective feeder program for the high school team. Callinan recalls the infant stages of the youth program when the wrestlers used mats that were originally purchased for the high school. Without a high school team at the time, the youth wrestlers took advantage of the vacant mats and practiced in the cafeteria. Two years later, the Cougar wrestling team, headed by Bob and Tom Gannon was born and in their three years of existence have already produced two state champions; the first being Dan Mak in 2011, with the most recent coming last week at the D-3 states, when Conor Douglas captured the state title in the 145 weight class. Additionally, the Litchfield Middle School recently produced their own state champion in the form of Ryan Callinan in the 185-pound weight class. Hayward attributes a large part of the ‘feeder program’ success to the Gannons.


With the Cougar coaches allowing the middle school wrestlers to share the mats with their mentors, Hayward notes that the younger wrestler’s practice time has increased from approximately four to ten hours per week, saying “that was huge” with respect to the development of the entire program. In a few short years, the youth wrestling program has been very successful on the mats as well as in the fund generating department. In handing out kudos for the continued growth and interest in wrestling, Hayward said, “Steve (Callinan) is responsible for the entire program – it didn’t exist until he started it.” In the widespread yet close-knit family of Litchfield coaches and volunteers, it is expected that Chris Gandia will take over for Callinan in the fall of 2012 as the coach for the elementary and middle school teams.


Litchfield Hosts Middle School Wrestling Meet of Champions


by Marc Ayotte Campbell High School and the Cougar Den was the happening place in


Litchfield this past weekend. On Saturday, February 25, Litchfield Youth Wrestling in conjunction with the Friends of Litchfield Wrestling hosted the New Hampshire middle school Meet of Champions (MOC). From 6 a.m. on Sunday into the early evening, in excess of one thousand, fifth through eighth grade wrestlers and interested spectators made the Campbell gymnasium, cafeteria and hallways their home for a day. Mike Hayward, who is the president of Litchfield Youth Wrestling, called Campbell’s hosting of the MOC, “the biggest sporting event in the history of the school.” According to the president of the Friends of Litchfield Wrestling, Steve Callinan, 32 teams comprised of over 350 wrestlers made their way to Cougar Country to compete in one of the premiere events for middle school wrestling. Local


Ryan Callinan of Litchfield was the State Champion in the 185-pound weight class at Saturday’s Middle School Meet of Champs held at CHS.


teams from Hudson, Londonderry and Nashua competed with teams from as far away as Plymouth and White Mountain in a truly, statewide spectacle. While the enormity of organizing and carrying-out such an event is mind boggling and admirable, let’s first visit the accomplishments of Litchfield’s entry into the competition. As part of the Litchfield Rec Program and not a Litchfield middle school team, per se, three individual wrestlers, while competing against the best of the best, captured second place trophies. The competition was broken down into two classifications; seventh and eighth graders as well as a novice division, represented by fifth and sixth graders. In the seventh/eighth grade division, Kordell Fruzen (107) and Nick Miller (124) each emerged with runner-up finishes. In the novice division, Marc Boomhower picked up the second place award in the 110-weight class. Other notable performances in the novice category came in the form of 5th place finishes


Scoop!


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