Sherry Walter Belknap

BLOOMFIELD, VERMONT – Mr. Sherry Walter Belknap, 52, a life-long Bloomfield resident, passed away Thursday evening, January 8, 2009, at his home surrounded by his family, following an extended battle with cancer. Sherry was born in Lancaster, NH, on February 24, 1956, a son of Walter Joseph and Laura Ann (Roby) Belknap. He graduated from Stratford High School and attended Berlin Technical College in Berlin, NH. Following his time in Berlin, he worked locally as a logging contractor. In 1984, he joined Labonville, Inc. in Gorham, NH, and he excelled in the logging equipment business to become a national sales representative until 2007. Sherry was a bear of a man with a big heart and a penchant for puppies and other small vulnerable creatures. He loved his baby dogs Whoopee, Abigail and Peek-a-boo dearly. He was a man of conscience and action with a commitment to his community. He served as a selectman for the Town of Bloomfield for 18 years, and he raised over $100,000 in grants to restore the old Bloomfield Town Hall, doing much of the rehabilitation work and painting himself. He was an outspoken advocate for the conservation of the Champion Paper Company lands and was appointed by Governor Howard Dean to chair the Champion Lands Advisory Council. In 2002, with the possibility of a town center being revitalized, Sherry worked with the former owners of DeBanville’s Store, Junior and Rose DeBanville, to raze the old buildings and build a new general store. The new store, deli and gas station opened in January of 2004, and has become a hub of activity and a gathering place for local citizens. Sherry and his wife, Darlene, sold the family house on Route 105 west of Bloomfield in 2005 and moved to the “camp” on his beloved Nulhegan River. All the while battling cancer, Sherry continued his efforts to improve the quality of life for his town. In 2007, he conserved 14 acres of the riverfront lands in Bloomfield on Route 102 to ensure public access to the Connecticut and Nulhegan Rivers well into the future. In addition to his loving wife, Darlene Ann (Poulin) Belknap of Bloomfield, Sherry is survived by his daughter, Karen Ann (Belknap) LaBree and husband, Eric Robert, of West Danville, VT; his father, Walter Joseph Belknap of Sandown, NH; his siblings, Julie Crichette Woods of Canaan, VT, Mary Belknap Noyes of North Stratford, NH, Michael Walter Belknap of Bloomfield, Sally Belknap Biron of West Stewartstown, NH, and James Lindsey Belknap of West Stewartstown, NH; his step-mother, Beverly LeClair and husband, Bryant, of West Stewartstown, NH; a step-brother, Robert “Bobby” LeClair of West Stewartstown, NH; and a sister from his mother’s previous marriage, Shirley Hubbard Thibeault of Beecher Falls, VT. Sherry is preceded in death by his mother, Laura Ann Roby, and his brother, Claude Hubbard. Calling hours will be Tuesday, January 13, 2009, from 2-4 & 7-9 p.m. at the Jenkins & Newman Funeral Home in Colebrook, NH. A Memorial Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday, January 14th at 11:00 a.m. at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in North Stratford, NH, with The Reverend Daniel Deveau as celebrant and The Reverend Brendan Whittaker assisting. An interment service will be held in the spring at St. Stanislaus Cemetery in Bloomfield.

Sherry Walter Belknap

February 24, 1956 - January 8, 2009