Loraine T. Worrell

Frances Loraine Tewksbury Worrell was born in Keene, New Hampshire on January 11, 1925, the daughter of Kenneth Durgin Tewksbury and Catherine Boutier Tewksbury. She died on October 9, 2017 in Manchester, NH. Loraine was predeceased by her parents in 1964 and 1974 and by her husband of 74 years, Robert H. Worrell, just four months ago. She is survived by her four children, Judith W. Thornton of Middlebury, Vermont, Kathryn W. Newton (Craig) of Middlebury, Peter R. Worrell (Kareen) of New Castle, NH, and Claudia W. Allen (Joe) of Charlottesville, Virginia. In addition, she is survived by five grandchildren (Brent, Sarah, Luke, Olivia, and Eve), four great-grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews. We will miss her deeply.

When Loraine was a child, her family moved from Keene to Hillsboro, NH and then to Manchester, NH, which Loraine made her lifelong home. Although an only child, Loraine had numerous extended family members who doted on her. The Tewksbury's had deep roots in northern New England and spent time at a family homestead in Wilmot Flat, NH, which Loraine last visited only a month ago.

Early on Loraine developed a habit of voracious reading, which she passed on to her children and grandchildren. She inherited musical talent from her mother, who enrolled Loraine in piano and dance; Loraine had wonderful memories of performing in musicals at Manchester Central High School. When a mother herself, Loraine loved to dance and sing, sometimes in the aisles of the supermarket, to her children's embarrassment. Although circumstances prevented her from continuing her formal education past high school, Loraine was an excellent student and a lifelong learner.

Loraine met her future husband, Bob Worrell, at Manchester Central High School. They enjoyed going to double features and dancing to big band sounds; both were excellent dancers known for cutting a rug in the kitchen if that was handy. They married the winter after high school graduation, knowing that Bob would soon be called to serve in WWII. The following winter, their first child, Judith, was born, while Bob was overseas. Loraine and Judy lived with Loraine's parents for the next two years until Bob returned from the war. Bob joined the family business, Lyons Iron Works, and the young family set up housekeeping on their own. Three more children followed: Kathy, Peter, and Claudia.

Loraine was a strong – even formidable – woman with well-defined values and opinions. She was a consummate homemaker, not in the Martha Stewart style, but more in the way that she got things done, and done well, while making it look easy. She cooked, mostly from scratch, until she was close to 90, and was an enthusiastic gardener, adroit entertainer, avid book-club member, and devoted community volunteer with the Girls Club, the United Way, and the League of Women Voters. Even after one of the umpteen twelve-hour drives that she and Bob were known for, she would somehow emerge well-dressed and ready-to-go.

Loraine's focal passion was her family, with travel and the arts important but distant seconds. She was completely determined that her children would have the higher education that she did not, and she and Bob saved for that from day one. They were founding parents of The Derryfield School. At the same time, Loraine did not overly place stock on formalities and always emphasized that accomplishment came essentially from "putting your mind to it."

Loraine and Bob began traveling as soon as they were able, often taking their children with them, and counted the former Soviet Union, China, Japan, and New Zealand among their favorite trips. They loved spending time with their children and friends snowshoeing and waterskiing at a summer house in Meredith, NH and later shell-collecting with children and grandchildren in Round Pond Harbor, Maine. She and Bob regularly visited wherever their children went and became familiar figures around the towns of Portsmouth, NH, Middlebury, VT and Charlottesville, VA.

Loraine was a talented painter from early on, but was only able to give it serious attention in her later years, when she favored pastels and watercolors. The landscapes and people of the American West and coastal Maine were some of her favorite subjects.

Outgoing, beautiful, and chatty, Loraine made a perfect counterpoint to the more reserved Bob, who she called her rock. Underneath her sociability, however, Loraine mainly had eyes for those closest to her, and enthusiastically counted her children's spouses among those. Her children's and grandchildren's interests and accomplishments were her delight, and she attended their events as long as possible. While she had many skills and interests, Loraine always said she loved being a mother above all. She lived that statement, and that love lives on in her children and in theirs.

The family will hold a private service this weekend.