Colebrook News & Sentinel Obituaries, Colebrook, New Hampshire, from Wednesday, May 12, 2004

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REJEANNE GREGOIRE

     Rejeanne Gregoire, 73, formerly of Colby Commons in Colebrook, died
after a brief illness early on Thursday morning, May 6, 2004 at Upper
Connecticut Valley Hospital.
     She was born on February 26, 1931 in Chartierville, Quebec, the
daughter of Phillippe and Dorila (Sicard) Dion, and attended school in
Canada. She was married to the late Jean-Baptiste Gregoire on December 27,
1952.
     The couple moved to Colebrook in 1963, and Mrs. Gregoire worked as a
bookkeeper for her husbandıs logging business until his death in 1969. She
then worked for Tillotson Heath Care in Dixville Notch, and for Manchester
Manufactu-ring in Colebrook.
     Mrs. Gregoire retired in 1999 and moved into Colby Com-mons, where she
enjoyed knitting, making rugs, playing cards and putting puzzles together.
One recent winter she knitted several dozen mittens and donated them to the
Kiwanis Mitten Tree. Her first love, however, was her family, and she
particularly enjoyed time spent with grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
     Mrs. Gregoire is survived by a son, Mario Gregoire of Stewartstown;
three daughters, Mrs. Germain (Gaetane) Boire of Colebrook and Mrs. Gilles
(Pierrette) Champagne, both of Colebrook, and Mrs. Denis (Chantal) Dostie
of Stewartstown; three brothers, Lucien Dion of Orford, Quebec, Paul-Emile
Dion of Chartierville and Gilbert Dion of East Hereford; a sister, Pauline
St. Onge of Bristol, Conn.; six grandchildren and three
great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her husband, Jean-Baptiste, and
by four brothers and two sisters.
     Calling hours were held on Friday evening, May 7 at the Newman Funeral
Home in Colebrook, and on Saturday morning, May 8. A Mass of Christian
Burial was celebrated on Saturday afternoon at St. Brendan's Church in
Colebrook, with the Reverend Albert Bellefeuille officiating. Burial will
be in St. Brendan's Cemetery in Colebrook.
     Donations in memory of Mrs. Rejeanne Gregoire may be sent to the Upper
Connecticut Valley Hospital, care of Kim Daley, Box 13 Corliss Lane,
Colebrook, NH 03576.

LAURENT W. LAPERLE

     Laurent W. "Zeke" Laperle, of Pheonix, Ariz., died on April 23, 2004
at the Bryant Hospice in Phoenix after a lingering battle with cancer.
     He was born on May 21, 1923 in Coaticook, Quebec, the son of Wilfrid
and Rosalie (Chicoine) Laperle, and lived in Beecher Falls. He attended
local schools. He was a veteran of World War II and was awarded two purple
hearts for wounds received in combat in Italy.
     In 1945 he was married to Jeanne Caron of Canaan, the daughter of
Filbert and Alice Caron. She predeceased him in November, 2000 after 55
years of marriage.
     He leaves to mourn two sons and their wives, Ivan and Jean, and Paul
and Dorothea, also of Phoenix; three granddaughters, two grandsons and two
great-grandchildren; nieces and nephews; a brother, Jack and his wife Kay
of Colebrook; sister Denise of Stewartstown; Mrs. Phillip Fauteux (Claire)
of Canaan and Pauline Rancourt of Inverness, Fla.; sisters-in-law
Marie-Paule Laperle of Beecher Falls and Therese Laperle of Sherbrooke. Two
brothers predeceased him: Louis-Aime and Conrad, both of Beecher Falls.
     Funeral services were held on April 30, and interment was beside his
wife Jeanne in the V.A. National Memorial Cemetery near Phoenix.

JOHN P. MARTIN

     John P. Martin, 61, of Lancaster, died on Saturday, May 8, 2004 at
Weeks Medical Center in Lancaster as a result of complications from a
lengthy illness.
     Mr. Martin was born in Lancaster on February 5, 1943, the son of
Millard F. Martin Sr. and Louise S. (Hodgdon) Martin. He was raised on the
family farm on North Road in Lancaster and educated in local schools. He
was a graduate of the New Hampshire Technical College in Manchester and
later became a master electrician.
     He served in the Army from 1964-1966 during the Vietnam War, at
military posts in Oklahoma and Alaska. He then returned to Lancaster to
work at the Groveton Paper Mills for 21 years and the last 12 years at
Hitchiner Manufacturing in Littleton.
     Mr. Martin was an active member of his community, having served as a
selectman for the Town of Lancaster for 12 years. He had served on the
boards of directors for both the Northern Community Investment Corporation
and the Coös Economic Development Corporation, and was a member and former
president of the Lancaster Kiwanis Club.
     John especially enjoyed working, tending, and just spending time at
the family land in Granby, Vt. He was a tireless worker and a loving
husband, father, brother and son. No words can appropriately express the
feeling of loss and sadness that his death has caused his family and
friends.
     Family members include his wife Sylvia A. (Shannon) Martin of
Lancaster; a daughter, Christina L. Martin, of Goffstown and formerly of
Colebrook; a son, James P. Martin and his wife Amy (Langelier) Martin of
Goffstown, who are expecting their first child; six brothers and sisters,
Janet Martin of Somersworth, Richard Martin and his wife Muriel of
Guildhall, Millard F. Martin and his wife Diane of Lancaster, Susan Wallace
and her husband David of Exeter, R.I., Virginia Martin and her husband Ken
Barnes of Contoocook, Patricia Martin and her husband Rick Moog of
Downingtown, Pa.; and aunts, uncles, a cousin, nieces and nephews. His
parents predeceased him in 1997, and a brother, Glenn Martin, predeceased
him in 1991.
     Visiting hours will be held on Friday, May 14, from 4-8 p.m. at the
Bailey Funeral Home in Lancaster. A graveside service with military honors
will be held on Saturday afternoon, May 15, at 1:30 p.m. in Summer Street
Cemetery, Lancaster. Rev. Dr. Thomas W. Bentum, pastor of the Christ United
Methodist Church in Lancaster, and Rev. Curtis W. Smith of Lancaster will
officiate.
     In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial donations may be made
to the John Martin Memorial Fund, care of Lancaster National Bank,
Lancaster, NH 03584. It is the family's intention to use the funds to
purchase apple trees that will be planted on the family property in Granby.