| Notes |
Died:
- Thomas Frederick Duquette, Jr., 63, a former resident of Springfield and Amherst, MA, Redding, CA, and Steamboat Springs, CO, and a 27-year resident of Pine Mountain Club, CA, died Saturday, July 5, 2014 while walking with a friend west of Pine Mountain Village, CA. Tom was born June 5, 1951 in Springfield, MA to Millie Mildred Jane (Harasik) and Thomas F. Duquette, Sr. He attended schools in Springfield, and earned his B.A. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He married Diane Rhea Morneau in 1973. They had been friends since meeting in school in 9th grade. Throughout his life, Tom was an avid reader and writer. He loved works from The Great Courses, such as the Classics of American Literature and Great American Bestsellers: The Books That Shaped America. He also enjoyed human interest, mystery, spy and psychological thrillers, poetry, biographies and historical works. He was also a film buff, able to recite lines from classic films verbatim, including Casablanca and Its A Wonderful Life. He loved reading the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post and The Week magazine (a subject of competition at home over who got to read it first each week). Tom grew up near Franconia Golf Course in Springfield and loved the game. He honed his skills to become an A flight golfer as a member of the Southern California Golf Association. He also loved to write essays, articles on golf and other sports for local newspapers. He recently completed two poems (Old Man and On the Street) and his autobiographical Asclepius (after the Greek god of medicine and healing) about health challenges in his life from 1990 to 2000, including his trip to China. Tom had an uncanny ability to engage people in conversation and make them laugh. He had great compassion for others, a wonderful sense of humor and a genuine love of people and life. He was a great listener, friend and confidant. As his sister-in-law Yvonne Cormier said, Everybody loved him. Toms long-time friend William Bill Streeter (historian and writer from Cummington, MA) summed up how he (and many others) felt about Toms sudden passing: Im heartbroken...I can find no words, only tears. Tom was preceded in death by his parents. He will be deeply missed by his wife of 41 years, Diane Duquette; his sister Susan Duquette (and wife, Jeannie Abrahamson) of Old Saybrook, CT; his godfather and uncle Robert Duquette (and wife Patricia) of Longmeadow, MA; uncle Bill Duquette of Springfield, MA; aunts Helen Brzezinski, Mary Tremblay, Jane Duquette and Helen Brown; his in-laws Gerard and Helen Morneau, numerous sisters and brothers in-law, cousins, nieces, nephews and beloved friends. A memorial service was held previously in Pine Mountain Club, CA. A local memorial will be held Thursday, August 28, 2014 at 6 p.m. at the Carriage House at the Barney Estate in Forest Park, Springfield, MA. Flowers may be sent there for the service. Cards may be sent to Diane Duquette, P.O. Box 6595, PMC, CA 93222. Memorial contributions may be written to Friends of Frazier Park Library, P.O. Box 1718, Frazier Park, CA 93225, in Memory of Thomas F. Duquette, Jr.
Published by The Republican August 6, 2014
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1951 - 2014 (63 years)
