Richard Grenier Obituary

WILLIMANTIC

Richard John Grenier, 92, died peacefully at home on June 18, 2024 with his loving wife, Judith, by his side. Born September 17, 1931 in Poughkeepsie, New York to Charles Edward Eddie Grenier and Sophie (Delekta) Grenier, he spent most of his life in the Willimantic/ Windham / Mansfield Connecticut area.

An athlete, outdoorsman, and beloved teacher, he began his education at the Ridges one-room schoolhouse. He was born a lefty but was deft enough with the right hand to be classified as ambidextrous, which helped him immensely in his baseball career.

He played baseball at Windham High School, winning the 1948 State Championship. He played American Legion ball for four years. He had a stellar college career at what was then called Willimantic State Teachers College, now Eastern Connecticut State University, as a four-year starter in baseball and scored the first run at the College's Knight (Alumni) Field among other highlights. He was inducted into the ECSU sports Hall of Fame in 1996, not only for his talent on the baseball and basketball teams, but also for serving ten seasons on the Softball Coaching Staff, helping the women Warriors

to nine regional titles and three national championships. He became Eastern's first baseball player to sign a professional contract, spending a season with the Chicago Cubs Class D Janesville, Wisconsin affiliate.

He continued his involvement in the sporting world throughout much of his life, performing as a high school and college basketball referee as a member of the Regional 8 Referee Board, and also as an umpire with the Willimantic Board of Umpire's where he served as their President and assignment chairman.

He was a communication specialist with U.S. Army and was sent overseas to Korea as a radio operator. He could still sing you a song in Morse Code at the age of ninety. He was a gardener, hunter, fisher, clammer, and all-around food procurer. He loved the outdoors and the natural world, parlaying his wide knowledge into becoming a teacher of the Earth and Life Sciences along with Mathematics.

He graduated from Willimantic State Teacher's College in 1953, then went on to receive his Master's Degree and his sixth year at the University of Connecticut. He worked for the Columbia School System and Windham School System teaching at Noble School, Horace Porter School, North Windham School, and Kramer Middle School throughout his career, as a much loved, respected, and patient teacher.

He loved card games, bocce ball and horseshoes at the large family picnics, boating and camping, swinging on ropes tied to trees over bodies of water then letting go, and cooking out over his own hand-built stone fireplaces. He spent countless hours hunting down, and dragging home, the biggest, flattest rocks he could find in the Connecticut woods, then fitting them together to make his own outdoor cook space, complete with chimney.

All the Brittany Spaniels he had over the years were affectionate, well trained, and well loved. He could play the banjo and could whistle like a champ. He enjoyed his meetings with the Roy's Boys. Always an optimist, he looked for the good in life and

didn't let very much get him down. He was a keen observer of the world, picking up on details that were often overlooked by others. He will be much missed.

He was predeceased by his parents, Eddie and Sophie Grenier, and his two brothers, Charles Grenier and Dale Grenier. He leaves his wife of 51 years, Judith (Tesar) Grenier, his sister, Judith Edgecomb, his daughter, Lynn Grenier, daughter, Karen Zambo (Michael), and son, Brian Grenier. He also leaves sisters in-law, Virginia Grenier, Debi Ryczek (Marty), Patricia Thomas (Harvey), Maureen Kronenberger (Thomas), his grandchildren, Deirdre, Kelly, Michael, Daniel, and Maxim, nieces, Kristin, Darcy and Cheryl Elise, and several other nieces and nephews.

Donations can be made to the Windham Fire Department or the Windham Free Library.

Richard's family will receive relatives and friends on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Potter Funeral Home, 456 Jackson St., Willimantic.

His Funeral Mass will be held on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Joseph Church, 99 Jackson St. Willimantic, with burial to follow at Windham Center Cemetery.

For an online memorial guestbook please visit www.potterfuneralhome.com.

Richard John Grenier