MANUEL P. ROBERTS

GREENFIELD, Manuel “Manny” P. Roberts, 63, a resident of the Morgan Allen House, died unexpectedly on Saturday, November 3, 2012. Manny was born June 25, 1949, in New York City, the eldest son of the late Rosemarie (Marcel) Roberts and Perry E. Roberts.

Manny grew up in Amherst, attended Amherst schools, and graduated from Amherst Regional High School in 1967. In the 70s, he enjoyed the Rock’n’Roll life as a percussionist and vocalist in many local bands, most notably in Real Tears, a Valley band popular at that time.

Manny went on to coach tennis at local colleges. In 1983 he coached the Amherst College women’s tennis team alongside the legendary coach Ed Serues, and between 1983 – 1990 he coached men’s tennis at the University of Massachusetts where, in 1989, he coached the men’s team to an ECAC Championship. Also an avid freshwater and saltwater fisherman, Manny seemed happiest when he had rod and reel in hand fishing with his best friend Brian Higgins. Manny recently retired from the University of Massachusetts following 37 years of service.

Manny leaves four children: Heather, in Greenfield; Ian, in Turners Falls; Raquel Barry, in Greenfield; and Shane, in Montague. He is also survived by a sister Rosemarie James, in Amherst; a brother Juan and his wife Michele, in Belchertown; his aunt Edythe Harris, in Greenfield; and a large extended family – most of whom reside in the Pioneer Valley. A sister, Marie, predeceased him in 2007.

Family and friends are invited to a Celebration of Life on November 17^th at the UMass Campus Center, 11^th floor, from 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to the Franklin Area Survival Center, 96 Fourth Street, Turners Falls, MA 01376, 413-863-9549. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com.

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Michael A. Cann

AMHERST, Michael A. Cann, 84, died on October 28, 2012, at his home in Amherst, Massachusetts, with family members by his side, after a long illness.

He was born in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany, on 27 November 1927. He spent nine years in Berlin with his parents, Henry and Hilda Cann, and his Aunt Hanna, whom he always called his second mother.

Hitler’s rise to power was the catalyst for his parents’ decision to emigrate from Germany in 1937. They first went to the Netherlands, where Michael suffered a serious bout of typhoid. In 1938 his father, an electrical engineer, came to New York to find work, and in March 1939 Michael and his mother followed.

After graduating from Weequahic High School in Newark, New Jersey, Michael attended Rutgers University for one semester and then enlisted in the Army. After basic training he was sent back to Germany to use his language skills in the Office of Military Government for Bavaria as part of the Allied Occupation. He returned to many of the sites of his childhood and observed the massive destruction of World War II. He was interested in Berlin for the rest of his life and made many trips there, including ones specifically to introduce his children and grandchildren to the landmarks of his early years.

He attended the University of Chicago on the GI Bill, where he was part of an innovative educational program in which one earned a BA in two years and an MA in an additional three. He participated in the Committee on Human Development, an interdisciplinary cultural psychology program, and found it helped him understand his parents and his upbringing. He joked about the many famous people who attended the University of Chicago that he never knew, but he was friends with fifteen-year-old Richard Rorty, whom he met when both worked on campus bussing tables.

Michael met his future wife Anne when she was introduced to him as “the new Camera C operator” in the microfilm lab in the basement of Swift Hall at the University of Chicago. She was a student at Antioch College in Ohio, and he hitchhiked to Yellow Springs many times to visit her. One time, he got a ride from Woody Guthrie. Michael and Anne married in 1951 in Duxbury, Massachusetts.

Michael graduated from the University of Chicago with BA and MA degrees and earned a PhD in psychology from Boston University in 1961. After brief periods of employment at the University of Vermont and the Holyoke Mental Health Clinic, he spent the rest of his professional career as a counseling psychologist in the Mental Health Service at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He participated in summer orientation programming for parents and conducted outreach to staff in the residence halls, who liked his practical, down-to-earth manner of working with troubled students. While at UMass he also worked closely with Disability Services and the Foreign Students Office.

He consulted at Goodwill Industries in Springfield one day a week for thirty years, and worked at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Northampton at both ends of his professional career, 1960-62 and 1990-92.

After his retirement Michael participated in many Five College Learning in Retirement seminars. One of his favorites was autobiographical writing, in which he wrote an extensive memoir of his childhood and early adulthood, An Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times. This illustrated narrative has been included in the collection of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC.

Michael felt one of his greatest accomplishments was becoming an American. He felt strongly that immigrants bring “new blood” and enormous vitality to this country and that immigration should be encouraged and supported. He was a fierce defender of free speech after witnessing the terrible consequences of eliminating dissent in Nazi Germany.

He believed in representative town government and participated in it as an elected member of Amherst Town Meeting for 37 years, as well as a member of the Planning Board, Housing Review Board, third Town Hall renovation committee, and Public Works Committee.

Michael had a lifelong interest in toy trains, both European and American, as well as other types of toys and cultural artifacts, particularly those of American origin. He joined the Train Collectors Association in 1957 as one of its earliest members. He was part of a large community of train collectors and enthusiasts and had many long-term friends who shared this passion. He was widely read in many topics and especially interested in science, technology, American history, and the immigrant experience.

Michael quietly took on tasks other people avoided and complained about, like vacuuming up water in the basement or making out the summer orientation schedule at work, and then enjoyed doing them in his own way. He was a perpetual “do-it-yourselfer” and referred to himself as a “sophisticated crate builder.” He loved working with his hands and enjoyed making things and fixing things, from cars to household repairs to his beloved collection of toy trains. When he and Anne moved to Applewood at Amherst, Michael created a workshop in their basement storage area, which was the envy of other residents.

Michael felt his greatest accomplishments were his family, his community service, his encyclopedic knowledge of European and American toy trains, and becoming an American.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Anne, of Amherst, Massachusetts, and three children: his son Frederic E. Cann of Portland, Oregon, and his family, Ellen Thomas, Alexander Cann, and Anthony Zavin; his son Robert A. Cann of Amherst, Massachusetts, his wife Catherine Bickford, and his children Adrian Cann, Rebecca Cann, and Madeline Cann; and his daughter Elizabeth Cahn, also of Amherst, Massachusetts. He was preceded in death by his parents, his Aunt Hanna, five other aunts and uncles, five cousins, and his cat, Buttercup.

Mr. Cann’s family and friends are invited to gather to remember him on Saturday, November 17, 2012, from 12-2pm at the Lord Jeffrey Inn in Amherst. Burial will be private.

Donations may be made to the Train Collector’s Association Museum and Library, P.O. Box 248, Strasburg, PA 17579, or the Massachusetts General Hospital Development Office, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, MA 02114, Attn Sara Kelly for the Cancer Center. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com.

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Veronica C. Rabinski

AMHERST, Veronica Catherine Rabinski, 94, passed away on Oct. 27, at Overlook at Northampton. Born in Amherst on Feb. 21, 1918, she was the daughter of the late Adam and Antoinette (Yankowski) Rabinski. Veronica was educated in Amherst schools and graduated from Amherst High School, Class of 1936. She worked for many local businesses including Knickerbocker Leather and Novelty, Co., Amherst Laundry, Amherst Carriage Motel and Cowls Lane Laundromat in Amherst, Lesnow Mfg. Co. and Cardanic Corp. of Easthampton and the Howard Johnson Motel in Hadley. Veronica was known locally for her sewing skills and upon retirement continued her seamstress practice privately. She is survived by her brother, Alfred Rabinski. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Thursday, Nov. 1, at 10:00 a.m. in St. Brigid’s Church, Amherst with burial following in St. Brigid’s Cemetery, Hadley. A calling hour will precede Mass on Thursday from 8:30-9:30 a.m. at the Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com.

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Mark D. Bachand

Belchertown, Mark D. Bachand, 49, of Warren Wright Road, Belchertown passed away on October 20^th after a valiant fight with cancer.

Mark leaves his mother Rosemary Fern of South Hadley, sons Mark D. Jr. and Lyle A. of Belchertown, companion Lorraine; his daughters Kandis of Warren and Robin of Sunderland.  He is also survived by his sister Ann of Hadley, his brother Paul and wife Trish of Belchertown, his sister Beth and her husband Stewart of Granby.  He also leaves four grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.  Mark was predeceased by his father Eugene Bachand in 2001. 

Mark attended Pelham and Amherst schools and was a gifted tile setter. He worked for Bachand Tile and Floor Trends of Amherst for many years, and until his illness, Ayotte and King of Chicopee.  Mark was a member of the Bricklayers Local 3 Union since 1987.   His craftsmanship can be seen in many places around the area including places such as Tower Square, Springfield, Westover Air Reserve Base, Chicopee, Barnes Airport, Westfield and the Belchertown High School. 

Mark was a devoted father and spent his free time with friends and family enjoying the outdoors, fishing, riding quads and making bonfires.  Mark will be remembered for his delightful, yet sometimes disarming sense of humor, generosity of spirit and his luck at Keno and scratch tickets. 

Calling hours will be Thursday, October 25^th from 5:00-8:00 pm at the Douglass Funeral Servive, North Pleasant Street in Amherst.  A short memorial service will be held at 7:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers Mark’s family kindly requests donations to the Fisher Home of Amherst for their compassion and care they showed Mark during his illness. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Miguel A. Cruz

1965 – 2012

Amherst, Miguel Angel Cruz Chicas, a long time Amherstresident, passed away peacefully, at home, surrounded by family and friends on Thursday October 18, 2012, after a two year battle of Leukemia. Miguel Cruz was born on May 7, 1965 in San Martin, EL Salvador. He graduated from Escuela Jorge Larde in San Martin in 1983. Miguel loved the outdoors, he was an avid Red Sox fan, his favorite soccer team was Barcelona, most of all he loved his family, friends and the team he spent with them. Miguel was a former resident of San Francisco, Michigan and New Jersey before Settling in Amherst, where he became a loyal member of St. Brigid’s Church.  He worked at Georgios in Michigan, Bueno y Sano, in Boston and CNS in Hatfield. Miguel is survived by his wife of 16 years, Maria Teresa Cruz, and their four children, Javier, 16, Jocelyne, 15, Miguel Jr., 10 and Andrew age 8, all of Amherst. He is also survived by one sister and many nieces and nephews. Miguel was a kind and loving man, with a kind heart who loved to make others laugh. He was always willing to give his support and words of wisdom to anyone in need. He will truly be missed and his spirit will live forever in all of our hearts. A liturgy of Christian Burial will be Tuesday October 23, 10:00 AM in St. Brigid’s Church, Amherst. Burial will follow in St. Brigid’s Cemetery, Hadley. Calling hours will be Monday, October 22, from 6 – 9 PM at The Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to, The Cruz Family, c/o Florence Savings Bank, 385 College St.Amherst, Ma. 01002. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

MARJORIE V. JOHNSON

AMHERST, Marjorie V. (Atkinson) Johnson, 92, of Belchertown Rd. died October 17, 2012 at Cooley Dickinson Hospital. Born March 11, 1920 in Holyoke, she was the daughter of the late Chester and Ann (Semple) Atkinson. She grew up inHolyoke and attended local schools graduating from Holyoke High. Mrs. Johnson worked at American Writing and Worthington Corp both in Holyoke and the Alumni Office of Amherst College and the Town Accountant’s Office for the Town of Amherst. She was a member of The First Presbyterian Church in Holyoke. She was predeceased by her husband, Carl A. Johnson in 1987 and two sisters Viola Bigelow and Georgina Atkinson. She is survived by her nieces Joyce Lynes and Susan Lewinski and her grandnieces and nephews. Funeral services will be Saturday, Oct. 20, at 10:00AM at the Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst with burial following in Wildwood Cemetery. Calling hours will be Friday, Oct. 19, from 5-7PM at the Douglass Funeral Service. Memorial donations may be made to the Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society, PO Box 6307, Springfield, MA 01101. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com.

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

David R. Bloodsworth

1937 – 2012

Amherst, David Reinhard Bloodsworth of Amherst, a professor of Labor Studies at the University of Massachusetts and a noted arbitrator, died Friday, Oct. 11 at his home. He was 75, and had lived in Amherst since 1972.

Bloodsworth began his career in labor relations after graduating from the University of Massachusetts in 1968 with a master’s degree in labor studies. In 1972, after working for the National Center for Dispute Settlement in Boston, he returned to the University to become assistant director of its Labor Relations and Research Center, a graduate program, where most of his time was devoted to teaching.

While maintaining his academic schedule, Bloodsworth was also an active arbitrator, overseeing labor dispute cases throughout New England. He was known for his balanced approach to the arbitration process, and a steadfast belief in the adherence to law. Throughout his career, he settled a number of important labor cases, including a 1994 pay dispute between the Carmen’s Union and the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, which involved ridership and the Authority’s bottom line. He also volunteered his time to the Town of Amherst, twice helping the town to reach accord with the Teachers’ Union during protracted and sometimes intense battles in the 1980’s.

Bloodsworth was a keen researcher into municipal and private-sector systems, publishing his studies in academic review journals, and he was regarded as a clear, concise and fair reviewer of current books and papers in his field. In 1978, he was elected to the National Academy of Arbitrators. He was also a member of the American Arbitration Association and the Labor Guild of the Archdiocese of Boston.

After his official retirement in 1997 from the University, where he had served for 25 years as assistant director of the Labor Relations and Research Center, Bloodsworth remained active in local and national labor affairs. He helped to organize labor actions on campus, including one for the United Farm workers. He also used his expertise in serving on Amherst’s Landlord-Tenants Committee and on the UMass Parking Commission.

Born in Arlington, MA, to Frederick and Agnes Bernice (Coyne) Bloodsworth, Bloodsworth was a 1956 graduate of the Belmont Hill School. After attending the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, he spent 18 months in the U.S. Army at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, during the Vietnam War. He then returned to school, earning a bachelor’s degree from Suffolk University and  MA from UMass.

An unabashed liberal with a dry wit and a mischievous streak, he was the guy you wanted to sit next to at a party, the one with whom you could trade observations and comment on the current state of politics, pomposity and fashion.  Among friends and family, he was regarded as a wonderful storyteller who always had a joke, an anecdote, or a slightly off-color song to share for any occasion. 

He leaves his wife, Carolyn (DiVenere) Bloodsworth of Amherst; a son, David Hayden Bloodsworth and his wife, Jocelyn, of Brockton; a daughter, Sarah Bloodsworth, of New York City; a brother, John, of Edina, MN; a sister, Lois Marello of Emerald Isle, NC; two granddaughters, and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

A memorial service will be held next summer on Cape Cod. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, or the Catholic Labor Guild. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Benjamin R. Branch

1977 – 2012

 Amherst, Benjamin Robert “Rob” Branch, of Portland, ME, formerly of Amherst, passed away Wednesday, October 10^th, unexpectedly at age 35. 

          Born September 28^th, 1977 in Northampton, MA, Rob was the son of Patricia and Ben Branch. Rob grew up and lived in Amherst until 2009 when he moved to Portland, ME to work in the restaurant and food service industry. 
          Rob graduated from Amherst Regional High School in 1996. Earning a varsity letter in 7^th grade, Rob was an outstanding competitive swimmer. He was also a member of the track and field team and enjoyed many sports while in high school. After high school, Rob attended the University of Massachusetts and Holyoke Community College. 
          He is survived by his mother, Patricia Branch, and father Ben Branch, brothers Kelly Dapprich and his wife Brenda, Terry Dapprich and his wife Kelly Lynn Dapprich, grandmother Irene Branch, aunts DeeDee Branch-Chrusciel and Barbara Weir, uncle George Branch, nephews Ryan, Keith and Logan Dapprich, niece Kendall Dapprich and many cousins who all will dearly miss him. 
          Calling hours will be Monday October 15^th, from 5 – 8 PM at The Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst. Funeral services will be held Tuesday, 10:00 AM at the Douglass Funeral Service. Burial will follow at Wildwood Cemetery,Amherst. 
          Rob was a sweet, loving, kindhearted person with a great sense of humor. We will miss him so very much.

          The family is establishing a scholarship fund in Rob’s memory to annually benefit a varsity swimmer from Amherst Regional High School. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to this fund in care of Patricia Branch, 270 Alpine Dr. Amherst, MA 01002. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.

Anna White Thompson

1926 – 2012

Amherst, Anna Thompson, 85, passed away October 10^th at home surrounded by her family. She was the daughter of Austin and Lida White of Vermont. Her husband, Charles A. Thompson Jr., died in 1995.

          Anna grew up in Bethel Vermont, on the family farm with her four brothers and two sisters. She always told stories about the adventures of the farm, from raising bear cubs to outrunning bulls. He farm life continued when she moved to South Amherst with her husband.

          In 1970, Anna became an LPN and worked at Cooley Dickenson Hospital. Later in life, she purchased Shady Lawn Rest Home, in  Hadley. Some of her interests included playing cards and board games, gardening, caring for animals, reading and cooking.

          She leaves her daughters Shirley Kellogg and husband Jeff of Waterville, NY, Anita Thompson of Goshen, Tina Thompson-Sullivan and husband Patrick of Amherst, her daughter-in-law  Carrie Thompson of Amherst, grandchildren, Timothy Thompson of Amherst, Theresa Emerson of Shutesbury, John Thompson of Cushman, Lee and Michael Kellogg of New York and Megan Thompson-Munson of Goshen. She also leaves her two brothers, Mathew and Samuel White and several great-grandchildren, great-great grandchildren, nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her son, Charles Thompson III, in 2008.

          At Anna’s request her body has been donated to Tufts Medical School for educational purposes. A memorial service will be held Saturday October 27^th, at 1:00 PM at the South Amherst Congregational Church. Donations in her memory may be made to the American Heart Association, 20 Speen St. Framingham, MA 01701. The Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst has been entrusted with arrangements. Obituary and memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

Service details, Social networking, Memorial Guestbook and Slideshow are available here.