Ava C. Lawson
Ava C. Lawson, four months old, the beloved daughter of Annette Vallieres and Bradley Lawson, died suddenly on March 3, 2010, in Newport.
She was born November 2, 2009, in Newport. She is survived by her parents, Annette Vallieres and Bradley Lawson, of Troy; by her sister, Taylor Lawson of Coventry, and by her little cousins, Jordan Carpenter of Newport Center, Corine Carpenter of Newport Center, and Alex Vallieres of Illinois. She is also survived by maternal grandmother Doris Gibney of Newport; maternal grandfathers Cory Carpenter Sr., and his wife, Colleen, of Morgan and Richard Vallieres of California; maternal grandmother Merle Lane Vallieres of Illinois; paternal grandmother Linda Lawson of Westfield; maternal great-grandmother Annette Vallieres of Derby, maternal great-grandfather Lucien Vallieres and his wife, Jeannine, of North Troy; special grandfather Todd Skinner of West Charleston; by her uncles and aunts: Cory Carpenter, Jr., of California, Daniel Carpenter of Newport, John Lawson and Diane Benway of Derby, Katie Carpenter of Morgan, Charles Carpenter of Morgan, Aaron Vallieres of Illinois; and by several great aunts and uncles.
She was predeceased by maternal great-grandparents: Charlotte and Dale Gibney, and her paternal grandfather, David Lawson. A sister, Jordan Lawson, also predeceased her.
Funeral services were held March 8, at the Church of God, Crawford Road, Derby, with the Reverend Laurence Wall officiating.
Spring interment will be in Lake Road Cemetery in Newport Center.
Should friends desire, contributions in her memory may be made to the memorial trust in Ava’s name, in care of Community National Bank, P.O. Box 127, Troy, Vermont 05868. Online condolences may be sent to the family through the funeral home website at www.curtis-britch-converse-rushford.com. Arrangements are by the Curtis-Britch-Converse-Rushford Funeral Home.
Claire M. Riendeau
Claire M. Riendeau, 95, of Newport died peacefully March 5, 2010, in Newport.
She was born November 17, 1914, in St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, a daughter of Henry and Malvina (Beauregard) Cordeau.
On July 9, 1940, she married Adelard Riendeau who predeceased her in 1980.
Mrs. Riendeau was a seamstress for the former Newport Plastics Company of Newport. She was a member of St. Mary’s Church in Newport, the Daughters of Isabella, and Community Circle where she enjoyed traveling. She also enjoyed bowling, playing cards, gardening and cooking. She is survived by her children: Therese Auger and her husband, Normand, of Charlottesville, Virginia; Denise Desrochers and her husband, Real, of Newport Center; and Marc Riendeau of Newport. She is also survived by the following grandchildren: Diane Smith and her husband, Garrett, of Charlottesville, Virginia; Erik Auger and his wife, Laura, of Lake St. Louis, Missouri; Michael Auger of Franklin, Indiana; Robert Desrochers and his wife, Carol, of Newport; Rene Desrochers and his companion, Penny Dubois; Randy Desrochers and his wife, Jessica, of Newport Center; Chantal Riendeau and her companion, Nicholas Bourassa, of Jay; Paul Riendeau and his companion, Jackie, of Tilton, New Hampshire; Marc Riendeau and his wife, Amber, of Marysville, California; and Robert Riendeau of Tilton, New Hampshire; 13 great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was predeceased by five brothers and four sisters.
Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 9, at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Newport. Spring interment will be at St. Mary’s Cemetery.
Should friends desire, contributions in her memory may be made to St. Mary’s Church, 191 Clermont Circle, Newport, Vermont 05855 or to the Orleans Essex Visiting Nurses Association and Hospice, Inc, 46 Lakemont Road, Newport, Vermont 05855. Online condolences may be sent to the family through the funeral home website at https://www.curtis-britch-converse-rushford.com.
Arrangements are by the Curtis-Britch-Converse-Rushford Funeral Home.
Carol Cameron Smith
Carol Cameron Smith of Greensboro died March 7, 2010, at the age of 91.
Born August 9, 1918, in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, to William Roberts Cameron and Narcissa Beal Cameron of Paoli, Pennsylvania, she married David B. Smith of Knoxville, Tennessee, in 1939, and they made their home in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they raised four children. They moved to Greensboro in 1954 to re-establish the Highland Lodge on Craftsbury Road as a summer resort. Mrs. Smith was the principal chef for many years and Carol’s Cookbook is still a favorite of hungry Highland Lodgers.
Winters, they ran the Darling Farmhouse in Burke, the Hub in Jeffersonville, and Andersen’s in Stowe.
They served as guardians ad litem for children in need of care and supervision. In 1980, Mr. and Mrs. Smith retired from the lodge. They traveled to every state in the Union and spent many years with their friends in Pahrump, Nevada.
Mrs. Smith was a competitive diver and long-distance swimmer, golfer and tennis player, downhill and cross-country skier and loved walking the woods. She was a constant supporter of the Episcopal Church, where she worked as a volunteer and made strong friendships. She also loved being with, cooking for, and entertaining friends and family, singing the night away at bonfires on the beach, almost as much as dancing with her husband, Dave. He died August 8, 2005.
She leaves their four children: David B. Smith Jr. and his wife, Wilhelmina; Roberts Cameron Smith and his wife, Aloha; John Otey Smith and his wife, Nancy; Barbara Smith Cedarfield and her husband, David; nieces: Narcissa Boyd Gomes; Judy Boyd Dales and her husband, Andy; Nancy Smith Smith and her husband, Jay; nephews: Robert Ragsdale Smith Jr. and his wife, Theresa; Alexander Duff Murray and his wife, Jill; Cameron Murray and his wife, Connie; seven grandchildren: Alexander, Samantha, Coeli, Finnegan, Lincoln, Jeffrey and Matthew; and 12 great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her sisters Barbara Cameron Murray of Bellevue, Washington, and Narcissa Cameron Boyd of Greensboro.
There will be a memorial service honoring the life of Carol Smith at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church in Hardwick on Monday, March 29, for family only. A larger gathering of all her friends who wish to celebrate her life will be announced later on. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the food pantry at the church.
Thomas S. Steele
Thomas S. Steele 69, of Bonita Springs, Florida, and Derby, Vermont, died unexpectedly in Naples, Florida, on Saturday, March 6.
He was born on January 1, 1941, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a son of Margaret S. Steele and Wolcott L. Steele, both from Iowa. He graduated from Frankford High School in June of 1959 and attended Temple University for two years in Philadelphia
He founded Frankford/Wayne Mastering Labs in Philadelphia in 1966 after various stints as a disc jockey at radio stations in the Philadelphia area. In 1974, he expanded the Frankford/Wayne operation into New York, New York, where he was the owner and chief Engineer until 1990 when he moved to Derby. The New York operation was taken over by his daughter Tracy Lynn Steele. In 1991 he built and founded WMOO-FM Radio in Derby, and was the radio station’s owner, chief engineer, manager and morning show personality until 2001 when he sold the stations (WMOO-FM and WIKE-AM) and retired.
He is survived by his wife, Carrie Ann Steele; his daughter, Tracy Lynn Steele-Mahoney; his grandson, Jackson Thomas Mahoney; his son-in-law, Paul Mahoney; his step-daughter, Chelsea Ann Pulver; his brother, Robert W. Steele; and his sister-in-law, Nancy Steele, as well as many close friends and extended family.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Mr. Steele’s memory may be made to the Frontier Animal Society, 502 Strawberry Acres, Newport, Vermont 05855; or Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International, 26 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, New York 10004
Kenneth L. Toombs