John H. Amey

December 25, 1949 - November 3, 2018

PITTSBURG — John Holman Amey, 68, passed away quietly early on Saturday morning, Nov. 3, 2018, at his home in Pittsburg after a courageous battle with cancer. He was born in West Stewartstown on Dec. 25, 1949, a son of the late Holman J. and Dorothy (Sprague) Amey. He was the fifth of nine children and was, as his mother put it, her “very best Christmas present ever.” He received his education at the Pittsburg schools and graduated in 1968. John loved the woods and farming, taking over the day-to-day duties of the family farm, including the milking and raising of young livestock, at the young age of 15. He would continue to run the farm after his parents passed on, and did so for more than 52 years. John earned the prestigious NH Farm of Distinction and received many other awards over the years for the high quality of the milk. He was a true believer in animal husbandry, and his fine herd of Holsteins was noted for their good nature and high milk production. In the last few years of operation, John had converted to the coveted organic status. He also ran a small beef operation as a sideline and always kept a few sheep. His farm is one of the very few that have continuously kept sheep since its founding during the Civil War years. When the farm closed down commercially earlier in 2018, it was the last dairy farm in the Town of Pittsburg. John was active with the NH Farm Bureau and was the Coos County president for several years. He was a member of the board of directors at the Merrimack Farmers’ Exchange and was the county representative for the FSA program. John was also active in local politics, performing the duty of Pittsburg Town Moderator for several years, and he was a member of the Pittsburg School Board. He also served several terms on the local planning board. John’s last public contribution was spearheading the local opposition to the Northern Pass power line project. John appeared in several films and documentaries, some of which were for The Society for the Protection of NH Forests and the NH Farm Bureau. John has also appeared in Yankee and Forbes magazines on special interest topics. John loved to write and could accurately figure mathematics in his head. His dry sense of humor was a local legend, and his witty anecdotes were always a hit in any gathering. He loved maple sugaring, and some of his best times were spent in the family sugar house, where he made the syrup in the old-fashioned method of his forebears. John also loved forest management and acted as his own forester on many wood harvests on his land. He was a good steward of the land, and always believed very strongly that, as a steward, it was his duty to leave the land better than he found it. He was a music lover, too, and for 15 years had hosted the Amey Family Bluegrass Concert under the Stars. He loved that event, where he would revel in the music and camaraderie, and loved his official part as host that went along with it. John loved to go see his favorite band, Parker Hill Road, where he would show up unannounced at their performances. John especially loved his grandchildren and spent as much of his free time as he could with them. He would often be seen in the evenings holding one or more of them, reading to them or telling stories. He also enjoyed visiting his siblings’ sugar camps and going on adventures in the woods with them. He leaves behind his loving wife, Cindy-Lou (Duxbury) Amey of Pittsburg; son, Nathaniel, of Rapid City, SD; a daughter, Cayenne, of Colebrook, NH; son, Micah, of Boise, ID; son, Stephen of Daytona Beach, Fla.; daughter, Amanda, of Amherst, NH; son, Joseph "Dickie", of Pittsburg; daughter, Rachel, of Farmington, NH; three brothers, Roy of Pittsburg and Mark of Clarksville, NH, Paul of Waterford, Vt.; and one sister, Dottie-Jane “DJ” of Clarksville. He is predeceased by a son, Eric; a daughter, Janeen; a brother, Alfred; and three sisters, Maudetta, Nancy and Kathleen. Friends and family are invited to visit with the Amey family at the Jenkins & Newman Funeral Home in Colebrook on Friday, Nov. 9, 2018 from 5 to 7 p.m. A graveside service will take place in the spring of 2019 in the Indian Stream Cemetery in Pittsburg, of which notice will be given. Expressions of sympathy in memory of Mr. Amey may be made to the fund to keep his beloved bluegrass concert an annual event--the John H. Amey Benefit Account, c/o Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank, P.O. Box 252, Lisbon, NH, 03585. Arrangements are under the direction of Jenkins & Newman Funeral Home, Colebrook, NH.