Page 16
The Colebrook Chronicle
Friday, October 21, 2016
Obituaries
(Continued from page 15)
Roland Jr. and his wife Bexie,
seven grandchildren, and 15
great-grandchildren. Their sense
of family extended well beyond
their direct descendant,s and
Roland and Rita never hesitated
to open their home or their dinner table to friends who became
extended members of the Devost
family over time.
Born on Feb. 15, 1920, in
Norton, he was a son of David
and Blanche (Molloy) Devost,
and a lifetime resident in the
town of Norton. Roland was the
perfect example of Northeast
Kingdom hardiness when he
started his logging company by
working his team of horses in
weather conditions that modern
tractors could not navigate at the
time. His hard work and tenacity
led to the development of a
decades-long family logging and
construction business that still
has roots in the town of Norton
with his sons Gerry and Ronnie,
and his grandson Steve. Gerry
and Ronnie worked with their
father throughout his career
establishing Devost Logging as a
multi-generation business that
acted as custodian and steward
to much of the vast wilderness
within Norton and surrounding
towns.
His strong work ethic went
into everything he did, and he
always found time to volunteer
in the community, holding a
number of positions in the town
of Norton, and never turning
down a neighbor in need of assistance. Upon retirement he continued to keep busy with a
variety of projects, often enlisting his grandchildren to assist
him.
While Roland might have had
a stoic and serious exterior, his
friends knew him as a man with
a great sense of humor who loved
practical jokes and could break
into fits of laughter retelling
stories in the company of family
and friends. Some of his practical
jokes are so endearing that they
have been retold each year at
deer camp for several decades.
He was an avid hunter and his
knowledge of the local woodlands
resulted in a long streak of successful hunts and the bagging of
several record-setting whitetail
deer in the state of Vermont. His
passion for hunting translated
into multiple expeditions and a
trophy collection that included
elk, caribou, and other large
game from the hinterlands of the
U.S. and Canada. His passion for
hunting was instilled in his sons,
and the Devost deer camp, which
he constructed with them over 50
years ago, still fills up with generations of hunters that include
his sons, grandsons, nephews,
cousins, and a handful of close
friends every November.
Roland is also preceded in
death by his second wife, Wilma
(Mason) Devost, earlier in 2016.
There are no public calling
hours. The Devost family will
hold a celebration of life and
interment service in the spring of
2017, of which notice will be given.
Condolences may be offered to
the family online by going to
www.jenkinsnewman.com.
Funeral arrangements are
under the direction of Jenkins
and Newman Funeral Home in
Colebrook.
Jean E. Gates
JEAN E. GATES
CONCORD–Jean E. Gates,
formerly of Lancaster, died Oct.
13, 2016 in Concord at the age of
85.
Born in 1930 in Roslindale,
Mass., she was the daughter of
Chester and Lois Wheaton.
Jean is survived by her husband of 59 years, Laurence; four
children: sons Dan Gates of
Jefferson; Randall Gates and his
wife Lou McLaren of North Ferrisburgh, Vt.; William Gates and
his wife Carla of Amherst,and
daughter Reana Nice and her
late husband, Brad, of Telford,
Penn.. She leaves four grandchildren, Stephen Gates of Nelson, New Zealand, Amanda
Tierney of Manchester, and
Munro and Shea McLaren of
North Ferrisburgh, Vt. She had
one great granddaughter, Isabella Gates. She is also survived
by her brother, Robert Wheaton,
73, of Watertown, Mass.
Jean maintained a career in
personal banking in both Mass.
and N.H. with a 15-year hiatus
to raise her family. She started
at the 10 School Street Boston
main branch of the former Boston Five Cents Savings Bank
where she was the first female
teller ever hired. Before her
retirement she was a long time
employee of the Bank of New
Hampshire.
Jean was a lifelong Red Sox
fan and was incredibly happy to
finally see them win a World
Series championship in 2004
followed by subsequent wins in
2007 and 2013. She was an avid
cribbage player and enjoyed
travelling to regional tournament s throughout New England
with Larry.
No memorial service is scheduled and the family appreciates
any memorial gifts be given to
the North Star Lodge 8 of Lancaster, 25 Main Street, Lancaster, NH 03584. Jean’s ashes
will be interred in the Gates
Family plot in Harvard, Mass.
Arrangements are under the
direction of Bailey Funeral
Home in Lancaster. Please go
to www.baileyfh.net for more
information or to send an online
condolence.