Donnel Robert Preston, 61, of Boston, died on March 19 following a brief illness. Donnel was born in Chester, Pennsylvania to the late Harold Lopez and the late Orlean M. Preston. He was the middle son of three brothers, Harold, the elder, and Stephen, the youngest. His family moved to Boston when he was...
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Richard Charles “Mike” Hoeh died on Jan. 26, with his wife and eldest daughter by his side. He had been in home hospice care in Bethel, Maine, since a recent diagnosis of cancer. He was born at Faulkner Hospital in Jamaica Plain on July 18, 1930, to Frederick and Margaret (Morlock) Hoeh, both children...
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Dawn Marie MacLeod, a Forest Hills resident, died on Jan. 24. She was 53. Wife of Eric H. Brown; loving mother of Meghan MacLeod of Dedham and Katherine Rohlfing of Jamaica Plain; daughter of the late Malcolm C. and Marie MacLeod; sister of David M. MacLeod of North Conway, New Hampshire, the late Scott...
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Jack Fahey, a 40-year resident of Jamaica Plain, died on Jan. 11 from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) at the age of 74, in the loving company of his family and friends. Jack was a lifelong left-wing activist, beginning with his opposition to the Vietnam War while a student at Northeastern University and member of...
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Georgi Erica Scarpelli, of Worcester and former Jamaica Plain resident, died on Jan. 6. Beloved daughter of the late George Vega and Louise Scarpelli. Loving sister of Toni Ann Komst (retired Boston EMS) of Mission Hill, Ed Komst of Pennsylvania, GiGi Florence and her husband Oscar of Worcester, Marcia Lawrence of Worcester and Aaron...
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Jeanette P. Murphy, 70, died on Dec. 19. Beloved mother of Jamie and Lauren and grandmother to Daniel and Paige Johnston and Ryan and Kyle Carroll. Almost as important in her life, were her dogs Zoey and Onx and her bird, Andrew, of 24 years. We will always remember Jeanette for her confidence, directness,...
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Marie McLaughlin, a long-time Jamaica Plain resident, died peacefully surrounded by her adoring family on Oct. 5 in Plymouth. She was 82. She was a woman who thrived on life; a generous mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who passed her commitment to equality and fairness down through generations. Her actions throughout her life portray a...
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Edward Foch of Hingham, formerly of Dedham and Jamaica Plain, died on Sept. 27 surrounded by his loving family. Ed owned and operated Callahan’s Men’s Stores in both Jamaica Plain and Roxbury. He was a World War II veteran serving with the United States Army and was the proud recipient of many military service...
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Elizabeth G. English, a longtime Jamaica Plain resident, died on July 7. She was 97. Daughter of the late Thomas H. Skinner and Esther (Jennings) Skinner. She married Edward Wesley English, Jr. (deceased) of New Bern, North Carolina. She is survived by five children: Deborah A. (English) Rippy, Mai Chang (formerly Joyce I. English),...
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Robert Burchmore Fraser, the son of the late Alfred and Helen Fraser of Wellesley, died peacefully at his home in Jamaica Plain on June 23. He was 87. Bob graduated from Wellesley High School (1946), Harvard College (1949) and Harvard Law School (1952). He became a corporate lawyer with a lifelong passion for public education and for the arts in Boston, the city that he loved. He is survived by his spouse, Hui Z. Liao, and former spouse Mary-Ann Fraser of Salem; a sister, Marilyn Fraser, of Sarasota, Florida; his children, Melanie Fraser Hart of Riverside, Rhode Island, Jennifer Fraser, son-in-law, James Boyd, of Auburndale, Matthew Fraser of Salem; and grandchildren Robert Fraser Hart, Callula Hart, Xander Boyd, Madeline Boyd, Lucas Boyd, Paxton Boyd, Seamus Boyd, and Hayden Boyd. Bob joined the Boston law firm, Goodwin Procter & Hoar, in 1955, after serving in the United States Army in Korea. He practiced corporate law with a specialty in taxation matters. He loved his work and brought to his practice a sharp wit, an impressive breadth of knowledge and a consummate professionalism. With a mandate to align the firm’s organization, operations and governance, Bob was named the firm’s first full-time Managing Partner in 1984 and he became its chairman in 1993. He led the firm for more than a dozen years, retiring in 1997. Goodwin more than doubled in size under Bob’s leadership. It entered the 1990’s as the “largest law firm under one roof in the country,” according to Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. Bob’s most enduring contribution was his development of the firm’s institutional culture; he encouraged his partners to think like an organization rather than a collection of individuals and practices. He encouraged his colleagues to go beyond the boundaries of comfortable tradition and experience with his inimitable “walk the halls” management style. Bob encouraged the firm to become more involved in the City of Boston. With his guidance, the firm looked outward, providing its support to the City of Boston and its people and institutions. Perhaps the fullest expression of that support was a $1 million charitable endowment the Goodwin partnership donated to the Boston Public Schools in recognition of the firm’s 75th anniversary in 1987. It was called SEED (Support for Early Education Development) and was, at the time, the largest donation of its kind ever made by a professional services firm. Bob devoted countless hours of his own time to educational issues in the City of Boston, meeting after hours and on weekends with concerned community leaders and residents. His thoughtful and committed approach led to involvement with many of the city’s significant education initiatives and organizations, including leadership positions with the Boston Plan for Excellence in the Public Schools, Boston Adult Literacy Fund, Boston Partners in Education, American Student Assistance Corporation, Citywide Educational Coalition, Massachusetts Commission on the Common Core of Learning, Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Education Committee, Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, and Boston Bar Association Task Force on Public Education. He committed his time and leadership to many of the area’s...
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