1943
John
2009
John W. Kidder
January 14, 1943 — October 13, 2009
BOYLSTON - John Kidder, 67, an avid outdoorsman and an insurance executive for three decades in Central Massachusetts, died Tuesday, October 13th in UMass Memorial Medical Center, after a brief illness.
Born in Cambridge and raised in Reading, John graduated from Tufts University in 1964 and marked the occasion by bicycling from his home to Utah. He later enlisted in the Air Force where he was stationed in Japan. After leaving the military, John lived in the Fitchburg area beginning a long career in the insurance industry. He later moved to Boylston and for the past 21 years worked at Gaudette Insurance in Whitinsville where he was vice president of operations.
John was very active in his community as a founding member of the predecessor of the Twin Cities Community Development Corporation, a director of United Neighbors of Cleghorn and past president of FACE (Fundamental Action to Conserve Energy). He was a member of the Appalachian Mountain Club. This August he bicycled the two-day, 192-mile Pan-Mass Challenge for the Jimmy Fund and had recently taken two hiking and camping trips. Beyond his many and varied outdoor pursuits, John was a man of wide-ranging interests including history, astronomy and architecture. In the late 80's, he studied for three years at the Boston Architectural Center, enabling him to take on many projects, most notably the design of his Boylston Home. The house and grounds became a "work forever in progress", as John constantly strived to improve and beautify them.
John is survived by his wife of 22 years, Emily Starr; his daughter, Molly of Boylston; two sons, Jonathan and his wife Beth of Wareham and Ted of Hubbardston; two granddaughters, Sage and Brooke; a sister, Caryl McMurray and her husband, John of Addison, ME.
A memorial celebration will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, October 19th at Harrington Farm, 178 Westminster Road, Princeton. (Directions are available at www.harringtonfarm.com ). In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the John Kidder Memorial Mountain Shelter Fund, TD Bank, 470 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA 01420, for construction or restoration of a mountain shelter. The family welcomes friends to visit at their home after 2 p.m. from Thursday through Sunday afternoon. Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden is assisting the family with arrangements.
Website & Guestbook: www.milesfuneralhome.com
Born in Cambridge and raised in Reading, John graduated from Tufts University in 1964 and marked the occasion by bicycling from his home to Utah. He later enlisted in the Air Force where he was stationed in Japan. After leaving the military, John lived in the Fitchburg area beginning a long career in the insurance industry. He later moved to Boylston and for the past 21 years worked at Gaudette Insurance in Whitinsville where he was vice president of operations.
John was very active in his community as a founding member of the predecessor of the Twin Cities Community Development Corporation, a director of United Neighbors of Cleghorn and past president of FACE (Fundamental Action to Conserve Energy). He was a member of the Appalachian Mountain Club. This August he bicycled the two-day, 192-mile Pan-Mass Challenge for the Jimmy Fund and had recently taken two hiking and camping trips. Beyond his many and varied outdoor pursuits, John was a man of wide-ranging interests including history, astronomy and architecture. In the late 80's, he studied for three years at the Boston Architectural Center, enabling him to take on many projects, most notably the design of his Boylston Home. The house and grounds became a "work forever in progress", as John constantly strived to improve and beautify them.
John is survived by his wife of 22 years, Emily Starr; his daughter, Molly of Boylston; two sons, Jonathan and his wife Beth of Wareham and Ted of Hubbardston; two granddaughters, Sage and Brooke; a sister, Caryl McMurray and her husband, John of Addison, ME.
A memorial celebration will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, October 19th at Harrington Farm, 178 Westminster Road, Princeton. (Directions are available at www.harringtonfarm.com ). In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the John Kidder Memorial Mountain Shelter Fund, TD Bank, 470 Main Street, Fitchburg, MA 01420, for construction or restoration of a mountain shelter. The family welcomes friends to visit at their home after 2 p.m. from Thursday through Sunday afternoon. Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden is assisting the family with arrangements.
Website & Guestbook: www.milesfuneralhome.com
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of John W. Kidder, please visit our flower store.
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