top of page

Obituaries

Virginia (Teague) Early

      AMHERST –  Virginia (Teague) Early died peacefully Tuesday, May 4, at the age of 72, from lymphoma at her Amherst home with her family. Born on New Year’s Day 1949 in Lowell, MA to John F. Teague and Mary Q. (Sullivan) Teague, “Ginny” was the youngest of three daughters and raised in Lowell’s Belvidere neighborhood. 

​      A 1966 Academy of Notre Dame graduate, Ginny received a teaching degree in 1970 from Lowell State College.  At college, she met her future husband, Robert E. Early, at nearby Lowell Technical

EarlyVirginia_edited.jpg

Joseph J. O’Connell

      AMHERST –  Joseph J. “Pat” O’Connell, 75, longtime resident of Amherst, NH died peacefully on May 28, 2021 at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, after a short illness.

      He was born in Brooklyn, NY on April 20, 1946, the son of the late Joseph J. and Eleanor H. (Kroeger) O’Connell. 

      Pat was a graduate of Conard HS in West Hartford, CT class of 1964.  He attended Southern Connecticut University for 1 year before enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps. He served in the Vietnam War, was

Joseph%20J_edited.jpg

Institute.  The two were engaged on Christmas Day 1971 and married on Aug. 5, 1972. They moved to Amherst, NH, in 1975 and raised three children.

      Ginny’s teaching career spanned 45 years in various capacities and retired from Nashua’s Infant Jesus School in 2015. After retirement, Ginny and Bob traveled in their RV, wintered in Florida and explored the country. She enjoyed line dancing, reading, traveling and playing with her grandchildren. Ginny was a devout Catholic and a long-time parishioner of St. John Neumann Parish in Merrimack, where she was an active member of the SJN Faith Sharing Group. 

      She is survived by her husband of 48 years; son Robert J, his wife Anna and daughter Julia of Burnsville, NC; son Brian J, his wife Juliet and children Casper and Cleo of Kittery, ME; daughter Deborah M. Dionne, husband Timothy and children Ryan and Emily of Amherst, NH; two sisters and a brother-in-law Mary Bethel Bater of Littleton, MA and Patricia and William Kern of Springfield, MA; and numerous nieces and nephews. 

      Please consider donating to the St. John Neumann Food Pantry or charity of choice in her memory.

      SERVICES: Friends and family are invited to a memorial wake, on Monday, May 10, from 4 to 7 p.m., at the Smith & Heald Funeral Home, 63 Elm St., Milford, and to a funeral mass at St. John Neumann, 708 Milford Road, Merrimack, NH on Tuesday, May 11 at 10 a.m. Burial will follow at Meadowview Cemetery on Foundry Street, Amherst.   To share a memory or offer a condolence, please go to www.smith-heald.com

awarded the Purple Heart, and honorably discharged with the rank of Sergeant in 1969.  Upon his return home, he earned his bachelor’s degree from New England College, graduating Magna Cum Laude in 1973. 

      He and his wife, Bonnie, lived in West Hartford, CT for 2 years before making their permanent home in Amherst, NH for the past 43 years.  

      Pat was employed as a sales representative with National Manufacturing for most of his career.  He was exceptionally loyal and dedicated to his profession, earning multiple awards and recognitions for his outstanding sales and performance. Pat loved his customers, and made many lifelong friends throughout his years with the company. 

      Outside of work he was an avid sailor and enjoyed many years of cruising with his family along the New England coast. Winter was filled with family ski trips in NH, Maine, and Utah.  His other interests were coaching youth hockey and girls lacrosse.  He loved to support high school football, and attended most of the local games.  Pat was a communicant of St. Elizabeth Seton Church, Bedford, NH.

      Besides his loving wife of 45 years, Bonnie (Boudo) O’Connell of Amherst, NH, he is survived by his daughter, Maura (O’Connell) Sweeney and her husband, Jordan of Arizona; and two granddaughters, Londyn and Emery.

      There are no calling hours.  A memorial mass will be held on Friday, June 4th at 11am in St. Elizabeth Seton Church, 190 Meetinghouse Road, Bedford, NH.  In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory may be made to Catholic Charities NH at www.cc-nh.org.  Arrangements are in the care of Smith & Heald Funeral Home, 63 Elm Street, Milford, NH.  To share a memory or offer a condolence, please go to www.smith-heald.com

Wayne Oliver Lynch

Wayne Oliver Lynch, a former resident of Amherst, NH for many years, passed away in his home in Exeter, NH on May 18, 2021. He was 82 years old.

      He was born in Springfield, MA in 1939, the oldest of seven children of William E. Lynch and Constance Weeks.

      Wayne graduated from Springfield Classical High School and from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in the class of 1960. His work career spanned five decades in executive positions, ending at Mattel Toys.

      He was very active in Amherst, NH town affairs for many years serving

on the town Ways and Means Committee and on the Planning Board.

      He is survived by his wife, Stevia; his daughter, Kara; his son, Stephen; daughter-in-law Susan, and granddaughter, Iris. He is also survived by his sisters, Beverly Frisby, Bonnie Taylor, Charlotte Hurston, and Jocelyn Pope – all of Springfield, MA.

      He will be deeply missed by all.

      Funeral arrangements are private. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Donations may be sent to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Center: 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or online.

JULY 2021

bottom of page