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Charles Lamont Post Jr.
Was Veteran, Accountant
Charles Lamont Post Jr., 74, of Vineyard Haven died at his home in the early morning of Nov. 24.
Charlie, as he was known to his friends and family, was a year-round resident of Martha's Vineyard for the last 22 years. As a stoic and deeply contemplative man who valued his privacy and solitude, he seldom left the Island, earning himself the respectfully humorous title of "Honorary Islander" among his Island friends.
Born on August 27, 1929, in Manhattan, N.Y, to Jane Elizabeth Kelly Post and Charles Lamont Post Sr. (both of New York), Charlie had his early education in the city and his secondary education at the Salisbury School in Connecticut and the St. James' School in Maryland. He was introduced to the Vineyard at an early age, as his parents were longtime summer residents of Edgartown, for many years renting what was known as the Ambrose House on South Water street.
The Posts were members of the Edgartown Yacht Club, where Charlie developed his nautical skills, later sailing for the EYC in the annual regatta. After initially attending college in Indiana, Charlie enlisted in the Air Force and was eventually stationed in Bakersfield, Calif., during the Korean conflict, serving as an adjunct to the military court. Upon his honorable discharge from the service, he enrolled at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, where his major was cost accounting. He met and married
Julia Antoinette Parker, daughter of Katharine Danziger Parker and Morgan Merrell Parker of Grosse Pointe, Mich., and Fairhope, Ala. The couple made their home in Simsbury, Conn., where they raised two children: a daughter, Elizabeth Randolph Post, born April 7, 1965, and a son, Lamont Chandler Post, born Feb. 7, 1968.
Charlie worked at the Travelers Insurance Company in Hartford, and finished both his undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Hartford, in business and criminal justice administration, respectively. Charlie and Julia were divorced in 1975, and he moved to Houston, Tex., to pursue his career in cost accounting.
Charlie returned to live full-time on the Vineyard in 1982, settling in Vineyard Haven, and volunteered 10 years of service to the Superior Court in Edgartown, where he met two of his closest friends of later years, Ms. Rosemarie Haigazian, Esq., of Edgartown, and Harold Hill of Oak Bluffs. Some of Charlie's happiest moments were spent fishing, on the boat he shared with Mr. Hill.
In his last nine years, and to the end of his last illness, Charlie was very fortunate to have had the compassionate caregiving of and friendship with Ms. LuAnna Pinkham of Vineyard Haven.
He is survived by his former wife, Julia of Simsbury, Conn., and their two children, Elizabeth of Washington, D.C., and Lamont of Boston. He was laid to rest under a twin oak tree in Oak Grove cemetery, Tisbury, on Nov. 25. A private service was held for the immediate family, close friends and caregivers, presided over by the Rev. Alden Besse.
Donations may be made to Hospice of Martha's Vineyard, P.O. Box 2549, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557. Funeral arrangements are under the care of Chapman, Cole, and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs.
Colson West Mitchell, 90
Was Native of Chilmark
Colson West Mitchell of Vineyard Haven, age 90, died on Dec. 17. He was the son of the late Adelbert Colson Mitchell and Iva Maye Mitchell.
Colson was a 10th-generation descendant of Thomas Mayhew. He was born at Quansoo in Chilmark at the family farm, the oldest house on the Island, where the Mayhew family descendants lived for 348 years. He was also an 11th-generation descendant of John Howland, one of the Mayflower Pilgrims.
Colson worked on the family farm in his early life and took care of first his father and then later, his mother. He attended grammar schools in Chilmark and in West Tisbury and was graduated from the Vineyard Haven High School. Colson was an avid reader and was interested in political science and always followed state and national elections closely. He loved cats and was always concerned about the treatment of animals.
He is survived by his sister, Natalie Kinkeade of Revere, Mo., and his brother, Donald Mitchell of Vineyard Haven; six cousins, three nieces, three nephews, eight grandnieces and grandnephews and seven great-grandnieces and nephews.
A memorial celebration will be held at the Agricultural Hall in the spring. Colson's grandfather, Capt. West Mitchell, helped establish the old agricultural hall. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA), P.O. Box 2097, Edgartown, MA 02539. Arrangements are under the care of Chapman Cole & Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs.
Edward P. Silva, 80
Was Veteran of World War II
Edward P. Silva of West Wareham died on Dec. 8 at the Tobey Hospital. He was 80. He was born Dec. 11, 1922 in East Fairhaven, the son of the late Manuel P. and Maria Silva. He attended Fairhaven and New Bedford public schools. Mr. Silva was the husband of the late Alzira "Elsie" (Tremblay) Silva and a former resident of Oak Bluffs.
In the early 1940s, he owned and operated an automobile service station and worked for Morse Twist Drill Company in New Bedford before entering the Armed Forces. Mr. Silva was a WWII Army veteran serving with D Company 357th Infantry Division. He was a recipient of the European-African Middle Eastern campaign medal with one Bronze Service Star, the Bronze Star Medal and the WWII Victory Medal. He received the Purple Heart for wounds received during the invasion of Normandy in June of 1944.
Mr. Silva owned and operated the Green Line Taxi in Dartmouth in the 1960s and '70s. Later, he worked for several years at the Tobey Hospital and for the town of Tisbury as a maintenance man. He was a member of the Massachusetts chapter, Disabled American Veterans; a former member of the Vineyard Haven American Legion; and the Holy Ghost Association of Oak Bluffs. He loved dancing, furniture making, table pool and was a former member of the Big Blue #1 RV Club.
He is survived by his son, Edward P. Silva Jr. of New Bedford; a daughter, Barbara Ann (Sabino) Duart and her husband Peter Duart of Vineyard Haven; five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He is also survived by many loving nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. Mr. Silva was the brother of the late Gilbert P., George P. and Lila Silva.
The funeral will be Friday, Dec. 12, at 9:15 a.m. from the Wareham Village Funeral Home followed by a funeral mass at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick's Church, 82 High street in Wareham. Interment will follow at 11:30 a.m. at the Massachusetts National cemetery in Bourne.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to: Camp Safe House c/o Tony Lombardi, 28 Pine Lane, West Tisbury, MA 02575 or Vineyard House, 106 Eastville avenue, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557.
Frances Roberts, 83
Was Island Town Accountant
Frances (Brown) Roberts, 83, of Oak Bluffs died Tuesday, Dec. 16, at the Windemere nursing home.
She was the wife of the late Malcolm Roberts and the former wife of Frederick Luce of West Tisbury.
She was born in Carver on Feb. 3, 1920, the daughter of James F. Brown and Olga S. Merritt. Born in the midst of a blizzard, she made the trip home in the sidecar of a motorcycle, thus beginning a life-long love of adventure, travel and foul weather.
Mrs. Roberts attended Chandler Secretarial School in Boston during the Great Depression; the Chandler placement office secured a job for her in Vineyard Haven at Brigg's Store, where she was a bookkeeper and where she met Mr. Luce. Over the years, she worked for her husband's business and in the county treasurer's office. She served as Tisbury town accountant from 1974 to 1987 and after her retirement as part-time town accountant for Chilmark.
She was the organist for her church, the Christian Science Society in Oak Bluffs, for more than 50 years, and also substituted as organist for the Edgartown Methodist Church and the Lambert's Cove Church, in addition to playing at many weddings.
She was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star, the Scottish Society and the Grange. She loved photography, poetry, traveling, knitting and sewing and yard sales. She especially enjoyed observing nature and animals and watching boats come and go from Oak Bluffs harbor.
She is survived by her daughter, Martha Luce of Oak Bluffs; her son, William Francis Luce of Presque Isle, Me., and two grandsons, Matthew Luce and Nathan Luce of Waterbury, Conn. She was predeceased by her brother, Kenneth D. Brown.
Her funeral service will be held at a later date. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs. Donations may be made in her memory to the Christian Science Society, 123 New York avenue, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557, to the MSPCA, P.O. Box 2097, Edgartown, MA 02539, or to Hospice of Martha's Vineyard, P.O. Box 2549, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557.
Dominique Pochat
Was Skilled in Arts of Theatre
Dominique Bernard Pochat died peacefully at his home in Lasalle, France, on Dec. 6, of liver cancer. His family and friends were at his side.
Dominique, born in 1956, was a beloved resident of Lasalle, having produced numerous theatre festivals and community theatre projects in the area. He is survived by his daughter, Noemie Goff Pochat of Oak Bluffs; his father Raymond Pochat of Annecy, France, and his brothers, Bernard, Jean Michel, Jacques, Yves and their families, also of France.
Dorothy T. Campbell
Dorothy (Mimi) Townsend Campbell died on Dec. 9 in Winthrop, Me., at the age of 92.
Mimi was born in Melrose in 1911 and lived there until 1973, when she moved to Martha's Vineyard, a place she had loved since working there after her high school years.
She is survived by a daughter, Nancy Jean Fitzgerald (and husband Robert) of East Hartford, Conn., and a son, Alan T. Campbell (and wife Cornelia) of Vineyard Haven, and by eight grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren, on whom she showered affection and devotion.
A memorial service will be held in Vineyard Haven in May of 2004 at a place and time to be announced. In lieu of flowers, please support a charity of your choice.
Jane Luke Murphy, 50
Was Devoted to Family
Jane Trafford Luke Murphy died Wednesday, Nov. 5, of complications from lupus. She is lovingly remembered by her friends and family for her courageous 25-year battle with the disease and for her generous spirit.
Born Oct. 17, 1953 in Charleston, S.C., she was a graduate of Rippowam School and Wooster School, earning a B.S. from Briarcliff College and her R.N. degree from Pace University. A devoted mother to her two sons, she was an active volunteer at Greens Farms Academy, serving as class mother, school store volunteer and library helper, as well as participating on many committees. Mrs. Murphy was a member of the Women's Fellowship at Trinity Church in Southport and served on the altar guild. She enjoyed music, art and building intricate doll houses, donating several to church and school fund-raising events.
She had a deep and seasoned love for the Vineyard, where she spent at least part of every summer of her life as she shared West Chop and Mink Meadows with her family.
She is survived by her husband, Jonathan J. Murphy, and her sons, J. Luke Murphy and Gordon T. Murphy, all of Fairfield, Conn.; her parents, Joy and John A. Luke Sr.; a brother, John A. Luke Jr., and a sister, Hope L. Hetherington, all of New Canaan, Conn.; a brother, William H. Luke of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and many nephews, nieces, cousins, in-laws, godchildren and friends.
A memorial service was held at Trinity Church in Southport on Tuesday, Nov. 11. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent in Jane's memory to the Lupus Research Institute at 149 Madison avenue, Suite 205, New York, NY 10016.
John P. Malcouronne Jr.
Resided in New Bedford
John P. Malcouronne Jr., age 37, died at his home in New Bedford on Nov. 28. He was the son of Nancy Hadcroft Costello of New Bedford and John P. Malcouronne of Edgartown.
Born in New Bedford, he lived in that city for most of his life. He was formerly employed as a security officer at Building 19 in New Bedford. He was also a licensed oil burner technician. He served in the U.S. Army for three years from 1986 to 1989. In recognition of his service, he was awarded the Army Achievement Medal with one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster.
He was an adoring and wonderful father. He was an avid Boston Red Sox fan who also loved music and attending concerts.
He is survived by his parents; his step-parents, Linda Malcouronne and Edward Costello; a daughter, Gina Marie Malcouronne of Methuen; two sisters, Michelle Duarte of Aquinnah and Veronica Malcouronne of Edgartown; a step-brother, Sean Smith of London, England, and two aunts, Beverly A. Hadcroft of New Bedford and Julie M. Higdon and her husband, Dirk, of Oak Bluffs.
A funeral service was held on Tuesday at 4 p.m. in the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals in New Bedford. Interment in Oak Grove cemetery was private.
Gudrun Daub Dunkl, 89
Was a Quiet Island Spirit
Gudrun (Daub) Dunkl of Old Farm Road, Chilmark, died Jan. 27 at her residence surrounded by her loving family. She was 89.
She was born in New York city Oct. 14, 1914, the daughter of the late Frank H. Daub Sr. and Valerie (Chlupsa) Daub. She was the wife of the late Heinz Dunkl.
Mrs. Dunkl was a graduate of Columbia University and Hunter College in New York. She was employed as a secretary for the Fisch-Scharmun Company, an optical importer and manufacturer in New Rochelle, N.Y. for 33 years prior to her retirement in 1971. Following retirement, Mrs. Dunkl moved to the Vineyard, where she remained a resident for 33 years.
She is survived by three children: Heidi Dunkl, Peter Dunkl and Frank Dunkl, all of Chilmark, and was the sister of the late Frank H. Daub Jr.
Funeral services and burial were private. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Hospice of Martha's Vineyard, One Hospital Way, Oak Bluffs MA 02557.
Peter Vernam Behr, 51
Was Active in Red Cross
Peter Vernam Behr of Vineyard Haven, a wonderful father, excellent carpenter and doer of good deeds, died peacefully after a short and unexpected illness on Jan. 25 at the age of 51. He was the son of Frederic Howell Behr and Jeanne Perry White Behr of Morristown, N.J. He was the great-great-great-grandson of Commodore Matthew Perry.
Peter was born on April 21, 1952 in Dusseldorf, Germany while his father was a foreign service officer there. After his father's death in 1961, Peter spent the next eight years at boarding school, first at Fessenden School in West Newton, and then at Avon Old Farms School in Avon, Conn. During that time his mother moved the family to a farm in Sherborn, which is where Peter met perhaps the single most important influence on his childhood: a Yankee horse trader named Tim Burgess. It was there that Peter was to develop a love of animals and the outdoors that stayed with him his entire life.
Following high school, Peter spent the next eight years between Boston, New York, Martha's Vineyard and Vermont. He met his wife Diane C. Magnusson, in New York city in 1977. In 1978 they married
at St. Andrew's Church in Edgartown and subsequently moved to Brownsville, Vt., where Peter started his first business in environmental design, known as Behr Essentials. He also built his own home overlooking Mt. Ascutney. A son, Matthew Perry Behr, was born to the couple on April 23, 1984. The marriage ended in divorce.
The association of Peter's family with the Vineyard began before he was born, when his grandmother came to Edgartown in the 1940s. He was lucky enough to spend almost every summer on the Island while growing up. In 1994 he decided to make the Vineyard his permanent home, and became a full-time carpenter. In 1996 his second son, Marcus Theodore Behr, was born to Lisa McGuire, giving him the joys of fatherhood once again.
Influenced by one of his early mentors, Ed Tyra, he built graceful, environmentally respectful barns and houses on the Island over the next 10 years. At the time of his death, he was putting an addition on his brother's house in Edgartown (originally the Daggett boat house, later moved to Pierce Lane as the guest house for the Behr family home). During several previous renovations he made it a beautiful and liveable house. He was excited about his current project and was up on a ladder admiring the view from the balcony on the day he entered the hospital.
Among the many things he offered his community was his work with the American Red Cross. As a director of disaster services for the Island, he brought his knowledge of computers and communication systems to the job. His enthusiasm and caring earned him the respect and admiration of his co-workers.
He is survived by his two sons, Matthew of Garrison, N.Y., and Marcus of Vineyard Haven. He is also survived by his brothers, Eric and Rick, and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins, as well as many devoted friends who miss him terribly.
There will be a funeral service at St. Andrew's Church in Edgartown at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. the 31. He has been cremated and the interment of the ashes will be private. A reception will follow the service at the home of his cousin, Granville White, on Fuller street.
Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs.
Nancy G. Love, 63
Was Designer and Volunteer
Nancy Gabrielle Love of Sharon, Conn., and Vineyard Haven died on Jan. 19 at the Mary McCarthy Hospice House in Sandwich. She was 63.
Born on March 16, 1940, she was the daughter of the late Albert and Marjorie (Cena) Love. She earned a bachelor of science degree from Seattle University and had been a fashion designer for Church Street Trading Company in Great Barrington.
Mrs. Love resided in Sharon and Vineyard Haven for 10 years, having previously resided in New York city.
She was a member of several cancer support groups and was an avid reader, runner and cook; she also enjoyed designing and listening to music. Mrs. Love did volunteer work for various hospitals, American Red Cross organizations and cancer foundations.
She leaves two sons, Thomas Critser of Mountain View, Calif., and Michael Critser of San Diego, Calif; a daughter, Amy Love-Heflin of Vineyard Haven; two brothers: Edward Love of Amherst and Albert Love of Seattle, Wash., four grandchildren and 10 nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be scheduled for a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society -- Centralized Memorial Processing Center, 30 Speen street, Framingham, MA 01701.
Arrangements are under the direction of the Dyer-Lake Funeral Home, 161 Commonwealth avenue, Village of Attleboro Falls, North Attleboro.
Trude Wenzel Lash
Was Children's Advocate
Trude Wenzel Lash, a longtime child advocate and seasonal Vineyard resident, widow of the biographer Joseph P. Lash, died Wednesday, Feb. 4, at her home in New York city, after a long illness. She was 95.
Born Gertrud Wenzel in Freiburg, Germany in 1908 to Emma von Adam and Friederich Wenzel, she was the oldest of five children. With no money for milk, she survived on watered wine and, while tutoring children to earn money to buy milk for her youngest brother, acquired tuberculosis. Thus, she was a battler from the beginning.
In 1931, after acquiring her Ph.D in philology at the University of Freiburg, she taught at Hunter College as an exchange student. In Berlin she put in four eventful months on an anti-Hitler newspaper, infiltrating Nazi meetings, before she married
Eliot D. Pratt, a member of a prominent New York family, and moved to the United States. Before their divorce in 1943, the couple helped many people opposed to Hitler flee Germany.
In 1944 Trude Pratt married
Joseph Lash and together they formed a strong friendship with Eleanor Roosevelt. It was Mrs. Roosevelt who recommended Trude Lash to the Citizens' Committee for Children of New York (CCC) in 1946; there she eventually served as executive director from 1952-72. Later she recalled that she hadn't felt ready for the job; she had three children in school at the time, and an infant son from her marriage to Mr. Lash, but "Eleanor told me that if we wait until we're ready, we'll never do anything, and then it will be too late."
Her leadership brought citywide reforms in day care, juvenile detention and foster care, all of which were underscored by Mrs. Lash's primary and deeply-rooted belief in the power of volunteers.
After her retirement from CCC, she continued her advocacy at the Foundation for Child Development, where she continued to do what she felt she was best at - getting other people to do their best, stick to it and believe in themselves. After Mrs. Roosevelt's death in 1961, Congress established the Eleanor Roosevelt Institute; and in 1984 Mrs. Lash, after working to combine the Eleanor Roosevelt Institute with the Franklin Roosevelt Institute, became its chairman. She continued in this position until 2000, when she and Arthur Schlesinger, together, became honorary chairmen.
She was honored at Hyde Park in 1997 as a recipient of the Val-Kill medal, an honor created in 1987 to honor activism and advocacy.
Trude Lash rose early to do yoga before her busy days in the 1950s and 1960s, decades before the value of this was generally understood.
The Lashes started coming to Menemsha in 1945, and Mrs. Roosevelt visited them here in 1950.
The home that they built in Menemsha in 1955 was for years the place where Mrs. Lash most enjoyed her love of cooking, creating dinners for family and friends. She also enjoyed vegetable and flower gardening and swimming. Mr. Lash once told the Gazette: "It has been a successful home indeed, lived in and loved by three generations."
Almost until her death, Mrs. Lash was a valuable consultant to many in New York, as well as those seeking first-hand experience of the Roosevelts. She continued to read widely, and perused the newspaper daily, and she could still be enraged by injustice and George W. Bush.
She is survived by a brother, Heinz Wenzel, and her four children: Peter W. Pratt, M.D. of Bridgewater, Conn.; Vera C. Pratt, MLA, artist, in Washington D.C.; Roger S. Pratt, architect, in New Milford, Conn.; and Jonathan Lash of Washington D.C., president of World Resources Institute. In addition, she is survived by 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a contribution to one of her many interests, including the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, the Citizens Committee for Children of New York, or the Foundation for Island Health on the Vineyard.
