United States High School Yearbooks by County
Eugenia Hatcher, 83, was mother of local man
Eugenia Jean Hatcher, 83, formerly of Brookfield and Stamford, died Jan. 29 at her home at El Castillo Retirement Residences in Santa Fe, N.M. She was the wife of Walter J. Hatcher.
She was employed in the medical records department of St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stamford for several years in the 1970s.
She is survived by two sons, Walter III and his wife Virginia of Bridgewater, and Robert of Middlebury; a daughter, Elizabeth of Tucson, Ariz.; three grandchildren, Peter and his wife Lisa of Alpine, Wyo., Kristen of Danbury and Jennifer of Boston; and two sisters, Mrs. George Burnley of Richmond, Va., and Mrs. David McCorkle of Ruckersville, Va.
Morton Miller, 88, was father of Roxbury man
Morton Miller, 88, of Heritage Village, Southbury, died Jan. 31 at his home.
Mr. Miller was born Oct. 27, 1914, in Brooklyn, N.Y., son of the late Mordecai and Fannya (Segal) Miller.
He served in the Army during World War II as a first lieutenant in the Signal Corps.
He was involved in the home construction industry for many years in the New Milford, Woodbury and Hartford areas. He then became a professor in the English department at the University of Hartford, retiring after 12 years.
Mr. Miller is survived by two sons, David of Roxbury and Mordecai of Kissimmee, Fla.; and three grandchildren.
The Lillis Funeral Home of New Milford was in charge of arrangements.
Robert MacDonald, 72, active New Milford resident
Robert A. MacDonald, 72, of Litchfield Road, New Milford, died Feb. 25 at his home. He was the husband of Janine MacDonald.
Mr. MacDonald was born in 1930 in Stamford, son of Robert and Elizabeth MacDonald.
He grew up in Darien and attended Brown University. He joined the Army and served in Berlin. He earned his master’s degree from Columbia University.
He lived in Honolulu, Singapore and Thailand while working for Muller & Phipps.
In 1978, the MacDonalds moved to New Milford and started Cetrac International, a gift import and distribution company. He retired in 1995 and crafted humorous wooden signs that he sold at craft shows.
Mr. MacDonald was a volunteer for the American Cancer Society and worked at the New Milford Regional Cancer Center. He was honored Jan. 23 by New Milford Mayor Bob Gambino for his service to the patients and staff of the Cancer Center.
Besides his wife, he is survived by two daughters, Kelly and her husband Chris Baumgartner of Warrenton, Va., and Michele MacDonald and her husband Tom Witkin of Sudbury, Mass.; four grandchildren, Claire and Emma Baumgartner of Warrenton and Taylor and Zachary Witkin of Sudbury; a sister, Barbara Thomas of Laconia, N.H.; and a brother, George of Simpsonville, S.C.
A memorial service will be held tomorrow (Saturday) at 2 p.m. at the Lillis Funeral Home, 58 Bridge St., New Milford.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to the New Milford Hospital~Columbia Presbyterian Regional Cancer Center, 21 Elm St., New Milford, CT 06776; or to the New Milford VNA Hospice, 68 Park Lane Road, New Milford, CT 06776.
Mary Ellen Buckley, 55, was a New Milford native
Mary Ellen Buckley, 55, died Feb. 13.
Ms. Buckley was born Nov. 5, 1947, in New Milford. She moved to Bradenton, Fla., in 1998 from Ridgefield. She was a retired social service supervisor for the County of Westchester, N.Y.
She is survived by her mother, Marguerite Buckley of Danbury; two sisters, Kathleen Hofmann of Danbury and Marguerite of Bradenton; two brothers, Dennis of Downers Grove, Ill., and Timothy of Salem, Ore.; two nieces; and a nephew.
Memorial donations may be made to the Humane Society of Sarasota, 2331 15th St., Sarasota, FL 34237, or to a charity of one’s choice.
Bernard Eisenberg, 61, had lived in New Milford
Bernard “Bernie” Eisenberg, 61, of New Milford died Feb. 21. He was the husband of Laura Eisenberg.
Mr. Eisenberg was born Nov. 12, 1941, in Brooklyn, N.Y., son of Morris and Bertha (Presser) Eisenberg. He was raised in Brooklyn.
Mr. Eisenberg graduated from City University of New York with an associate’s degree in hotel and restaurant management, from the University of Denver with a bachelor’s degree in business and from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a master’s degree.
He served in the U.S. Army Security Agency as a Morse code and radio teletype intercept operator in Alaska.
Mr. Eisenberg worked for Texaco in Albuquerque and Pueblo, Colo., Burroughs Corporation in Omaha, Neb., and Detroit, Mich., Fujitsu Imaging Systems of America in Danbury, ITT Rayonier in Stamford, United Auto Group in Danbury and AMS Services Inc. in Windsor.
He was a past president of the Industrial Relations Association of Detroit and of the Society for Human Resource Management, Western Connecticut Chapter.
He also served on the Area 1 Board of Directors and the National Employment Committee for the Society of Human Resource Management. He was a 33-year member of the American Legion, Post No. 3, in Ramah, Colo.
Besides his wife, Mr. Eisenberg is survived by two daughters, Erika and her husband Jeff Bright of Cincinnati, and Ellyn Eisenberg and Brad Taylor of Danbury; a son, Charles and his wife Anda Eisenberg of Boston; a niece, Anne Donofrio; and a sister, Roslyn Donofrio and her husband Erminio.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the charity of one’s choice.
Harry Abramoff, 86, father of New Milford woman
Harry Abramoff, 86, of 83 Commodore Road, Worcester, Mass., died Feb. 16 at the Hospice residence. He was the husband of Kimiko (Ise) Abramoff.
Mr. Abramoff was born in Worcester, son of the late Israel and Eva (Glass) Abramoff.
He graduated from Empire State College in New York, the State University of New York and the Cornell University School of Industrial Labor Relations.
He was a client advocate for the Worcester Executive Office of Elder Affairs. He was the former owner of United Cigars in New York.
Mr. Abramoff returned to school and was a student at Worcester State College until two years ago. He was a member of Temple Sinai, the Worcester Kiwanis Club and the Level Lodge of Masons, and he was on the board of directors of Elder Service of Worcester Area Inc. He was a licensed certified social worker and licensed real estate broker.
Besides his wife, Mr. Abramoff is survived by two sons, William of Lynbrook, N.Y., and Bennett of La Jolla, Calif.; two daughters, Judith Fields of New Milford and Jeannie Rutkowski of Southold, N.Y.; a brother, Morris of Worcester; a sister, Natalie Goldberg of Marblehead, Mass.; and six grandchildren. He was predeceased by a sister, Sylvia Goldberg.
The Perlman Funeral Home of Worcester was in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in his memory may be made to the International Waldenstrom’s Macroglobulinemia Foundation, 2300 Bee Ridge Road, Suite 301, Sarasota, FL 34239.
William Kessler Jr., 64, former New Milford resident
William “Willie” H. Kessler Jr., 64, of Nonnewaug Road, Woodbury, died Feb. 20 at his home.
Mr. Kessler was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., son of the late William and Margaret (Sheehan) Kessler.
He was a resident of Southbury Training School before moving to New Milford, and eventually to Woodbury.
He worked at Wolcott Center in Wolcott and was a Special Olympics basketball champion.
He is survived by his friends, Tim MacSweeney and Roberta Murtaugh of Woodbury, with whom he lived, and two sisters, Ann Patkis of Branford and Joan of Rochester, N.Y.
The Hickcox Funeral Home of Watertown was in charge of arrangements.
Virginia T. Coyle, 80, was a native of Roxbury
Virginia (Thompson) Coyle, 80, of Gay Street, Sharon, died Feb. 21 at Sharon Hospital. She was the widow of Donald T. Coyle.
Mrs. Coyle was born May 5, 1922, in Roxbury, daughter of the late Norman and Jenny (Ahlgren) Thompson.
She was a homemaker and home health caregiver. She was active in 4-H, Bridgewater Grange and Bridgewater Fair and was a charter member of the Bridgewater Fire Department Women’s Auxiliary.
She is survived by three sons, Edward of Lakeville, Raymond of Sherman and William of New Milford; two brothers, Les Thompson of Bridgewater and Leroy Thompson of Southbury; a sister, Norma Went of Roxbury; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held March 8 at Christ Church Episcopal in Roxbury.
The Kenny Funeral Home of Sharon is in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in her memory may be made to the Bridgewater Fire Department Women’s Auxiliary, Bridgewater, CT 06752; or to the Sharon Fire Department Volunteer Ambulance, Sharon, CT 06069.
James Slavin, 75, longtime area resident, architect
James Slavin, 75, of Heritage Village, Southbury, died Feb. 18 due to injuries sustained in an automobile accident. He was the husband of Maeve (Barrington) Slavin.
Mr. Slavin was born April 6, 1927, in Belfast, Ireland, son of the late Patrick and Isabelle Slavin.
He attended Trinity College in Dublin. He was a member of the Trinity rowing crew and later the London Rowing Club. He was a coach with the British National Team at the Helsinki Olympic Games in 1952.
He came to the United States in 1957 and practiced architecture in New York City. He was a practicing architect in Connecticut and New York until the time of his death.
In 1968, Mr. Slavin and his family moved to Roxbury, where he was a member of the Roxbury Democratic Town Committee. He moved to Heritage Village in the 1990s.
Besides his wife, Mr. Slavin is survived by two sons, Eoin of San Paulo, Brazil, and Patrick of New York City; a brother, Patrick of Ireland; a sister, Margaret O’Connor of Dublin; and a grandson.
The Carpino Funeral Home of Southbury was in charge of arrangements.
Contributions in his memory may be made to Southbury Fuel Bank, c/o Town of Southbury, 501 Main St. South, Southbury, CT 06488; or to Safe Haven, 88 Main St. South, Suite 203B, Southbury, CT 06488.
Mary Riley, 90, mother of former Sherman pastor
Mary Catherine Riley, 90, of Pearl River, N.Y., died Feb. 19. She was the widow of Charles A. Riley.
Mrs. Riley was born March 25, 1912, in Pearl River, daughter of Denis and Julia (Cashman) Lenihan.
She was a parishioner of St. Margaret’s Church, a past president of the Nanuet, N.Y., Senior Citizens Club and a recent resident of Dowling Gardens in Sparkill, N.Y. She was retired from the payroll office of Rockland State Hospital.
Mrs. Riley is survived by four sons, the Rev. David Riley, pastor of St. Cecelia’s Parish in Stamford and former pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Sherman, James and his wife Joan of Pearl River, Stephen and his wife Lauren of Shelton and Terrence and his wife Susan of Blauvelt, N.Y.; five grandchildren, Carolyn Chapman, Tara Machnik, and Sean, Keith and Blair Riley; and a great-grandchild, Kristin Chapman. She was predeceased by a daughter-in-law, Rosemary.
The Assumma-Shankey Funeral Home of Pearl River was in charge of arrangements.
Donations in her memory may be made to the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill, Sparkill, NY 10976.
Sherman Hale, 86, was a New Milford resident
Sherman B. Hale, 86, of New Milford died Feb. 19 at Rose Haven Health Care Center in Litchfield. He was the widower of Elizabeth Hale.
Mr. Hale was born in Westport, son of the late George and Florence (Nash) Hale.
He was a 1934 graduate of Staples High School and had resided in Westport and Norwalk prior to moving to New Milford five years ago.
He was a distributor for Arnold Bakers.
Mr. Hale is survived by a daughter, Kathleen Bannwart and her husband Bob of New Milford; two grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by a stepson, Robert Peterson Jr.; four brothers, Gilbert, George, David and Nathan; and two sisters, Dorothy and Evelyn.
The Harding Funeral Home of Westport was in charge of arrangements.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Lung Association, 45 Ash St., East Hartford, CT 06108.
