OBITUARIES for Thursday, December 19, 2024

PAUL L. O’BRIEN

WATERVILLE – Paul Leo O’Brien, 80, of Waterville, passed away peacefully Wednesday, November 27, 2024, at an Augusta health facility. He was born March 9, 1944, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to the late Leo and Helen Fuglestad O’Brien.

Paul went to school in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. He accomplished his associates degree. Paul also served in the U.S. Army in Vietnam from 1965 to the late 1980s. He lived in San Francisco and California, then came to Maine in 2011. Paul was a proud member of the VFW Post #6924, of Fairfield and Post #6859, of Portland.

In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his brothers Richard O’Brien, Dennis Santos and a sister, Frances Beach.

Surviving him are his sisters Joanne Ray, of Rhode Island, and Anna Good, of Pittsfield; many nieces, nephews.

ERIC M. BERGLUND

WINSLOW – Eric Mark Berglund, 59, passed away on Sunday, December 1, 2024, after several years of ill health. Eric was born on August 26, 1965, in Waterville. He was the son of Hugh (Pat) and Joyce (Beaulieu) Berglund.

He graduated from Winslow High in 1983. Years later, he married Deb Harris and together they moved to the Jay area when Eric began working at the paper mill. After many years, he left that job to return home and take care of his grandmother. He was a caring and helpful person and always helped others in whatever way he could.

He was predeceased by his grandson, Brandon Pelletier; grandparents Romeo and Ina Beaulieu and Harold and Josephine Berglund.

He is survived by his parents Joyce Berglund, of Winslow, and Pat and Ruth Berglund, of Benton; daughter, Brieann Berglund, of Auburn; grandchildren Aether and Kaciann Bunnell, of Auburn; brothers Chip and Andra Berglund and Shawn and Wendy Berglund, of The Villages, Florida; sister, Laura and Jason Rowe, of Benton; and several aunts, uncles; nieces and nephews.

A graveside service will take place in the summer of 2025, at St. Francis Cemetery, in Waterville.

Services are under the care of Veilleux-Redington-Lawry Brothers, 8 Elm St., Waterville.

JOANNA E. BASHAM

MARLTON New Jersey – Joanna E. Basham, 86, of Marlton, New Jersey, formerly of Concord, New Hamp­shire, Vas­salboro and South Port­land, died Wed­­nesday, December 4, 2024, following an illness of ALS. She was born in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, on October 8, 1938, daughter of Clarence W. and Mary Ellen (Myers) Zeigler.

Mrs. Basham is a graduate of North Penn High School and the Conservatory of Music, Lansdale, Pennsylvania, class of 1956. In 1959, she graduated from Grand View Hospital School of Nursing, Sellersville, Pennsylvania.

She married Rev. Paul D. Basham in 1959. As a homemaker and pastor’s wife, she served as organist and pianist in their pastorates, taught Sunday School, served in the church’s day care program, and entertained missionaries and guests from around the world.

She was employed part-time as a registered nurse in hospitals in Sellersville, Lewisburg, and Chester, Pennsylvania; Franklin Memorial Hospital, Farmington; and home nursing agencies in South Portland.

She had been a participant in the Women’s Health Study program, a national study in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer, sponsored by Brigham & Women’s Hospital, in Boston, Massachusetts. She was a volunteer at the Arboretum, in Augusta. In October 2012, she and her husband moved to Wiley Christian Retirement Community, in Marlton, New Jersey.

Surviving are her husband, Rev. Paul D. Basham; son, Timothy W. Basham (Catherine), South China; daughters, Carolyn Blasko (Mark), Pembroke, New Hampshire, and Wanda Gailey (Rob), San Diego, California; and seven grandchildren.

She was predeceased by her parents and her sister, Betty Howe of Marionville, Missouri (formerly of Cocoa, Florida).

A funeral service will be held Saturday, January 4, 2025, at 11 a.m., at the Wiley Church, 99 East Main Street, in Marlton, New Jersey. A time of visitation will take place at the church from 10 – 11 a.m., prior to the service.

Burial will be at a later date in the Brooklawn Memorial Park, Portland, Maine.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are requested to Nazarene Compassionate Ministries, 17001 Prairie Star Parkway, Lenexa, KS 66220 or to World Relief, 3507 W. Lawrence Avenue, #208, Chicago, IL 60625.

THERESA M. TURLO

WATERVILLE – Theresa M. Turlo, 99, passed away on Wednesday, December 4, 2024. She was born to parents Richard and Lucie Boudreau on August 30, 1925.

Theresa is survived by her children, William (Pam), Patrick (Linda), Anne (Richard), Timothy (Rebecca), Claire and Mary; daughter-in-law Katherine and former daughter-in-law Toni; many grandchildren and greatgrandchildren; nieces, nephews.

Theresa was predeceased by her husband, August, her son, Thomas, sons-in-law, Donald Bouchard and Jeff Marsh, and former daughter-in-law Lynn as well as siblings, Herman, Kay, Marguerite, Dominic, Denis, Richard and Cecile.

Arrangements are in the care of Veilleux-Redington-Lawry Brothers, 8 Elm Street, Waterville, where memories of Theresa may be shared, and an online register book can be signed by visiting http://www.vrlfuneralhome.com.

THOMAS F. SIVISKI

VASSALBORO – Thomas Frank Siviski, 79, passed away peacefully on Thursday, December 5, 2024, following a brave battle with Alzheimer’s. Tom was born on June 12, 1945, the son of Joseph Siviski and Clara (Terrio) Hapworth.

Being raised on the Siviski farm in Winslow, he embraced hard work and life’s simple joys.

Tom was best known for his laugh. It was loud, boisterous, and unforgettable, bringing lasting impressions to everyone around him. His laughter reflected his vibrant spirit and love for life, leaving memories wherever he went.

He was predeceased by both his parents.

Tom is survived by his wife, Carol; children, Tracy Anderson, Terry Hughes (wife, Kim), and Bethanny Hughes; grandchildren Sherri Secotte, Garrett Anderson, Victoria Cooper, Molly Secotte, Courtney Anderson, and Alex Hughes; great-grandchildren, Karson, Kolten, Eleanor, and John; stepfather, Lee Hapworth; brother, Robert Siviski; sisters Katherine White and Shirley Madore; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins, including Butch and Carol Lawrence and Sheila Pepoli.
Join the family in celebrating Tom’s life on Saturday, January 4, 2025, at the Winslow VFW from noon to 4 p.m.

SANDRA L. PARADIS

WATERVILLE- Sandra Lee Paradis, 82, passed away Sunday December 8, 2024, at her daughter’s home in Waterville. She was born July 1, 1942, in Waterville, to parents Wallace and Mamie (Dale) Paradis.

Sandra attended Waterville public schools, graduating in 1960. Following school, Sandra worked for C.F. Hathaway Shirt Factory, in Waterville.

Sandra is survived by her only child Laura Blake; granddaughter Skylar Addy; and her partner Peter VanDeets.

Sandra was predeceased by twin brother and sister Wallace and Elizabeth, and her parents.

Following her retirement, Sandra spent many of her final years residing in Unity with Peter. She greatly enjoyed her time in that community including spending hours at the Alpaca farm and volunteering at the local church thrift shop. Together, Sandra and Peter spent their time traveling and attending NASCAR races across the country. On any given day Sandra could be found knitting up socks, mittens, and hats for her friends and loved ones, in addition to her annual circuit at the local craft fairs.

L. SANDY MAISEL

WATERVILLE – Professor L. Sandy Maisel, 79, passed away on Monday, December 9. 2024. He was a scholar, political analyst, and a modern man of letters.

He was a legendary Colby College professor, Boston Red Sox and Buffalo Bills loyalist, committed duffer on the golf links of several continents, and lifelong presence in the students he inspired and shaped for a half-century.

Maisel, who was known by his middle name, Sandy, was a Buffalo, N.Y., native but as much a Maine institution as the distinctive college where he taught. He was that rare figure, an earnest bow-tied teacher with a whiff of the long-ago academic past melded into a modern man of letters who understood, and interpreted for students and readers of his column, the mysteries of contemporary political life.

Maisel ran for Congress in 1978, and he came in fourth in a field of four, but in the years that followed his defeat – itself fodder for a book that carries the best title of any political memoir of the age, From Obscurity to Oblivion – he came to understand the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the dance of legislation better than most of those who actually were elected to Capitol Hill.

Maisel was the founding director of Colby’s Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs and, unlike many academic students of politics, believed in witnessing politics firsthand. He was invited by the Wall Street Journal and the Boston Globe to join their correspondents at several national political conventions and enjoyed the banter with reporters.

The son of Sidney Beck Maisel, a retail furniture executive who operated a legendary store near Buffalo’s famous Broadway Market, and Ruthe (Spero) Maisel, Sandy Maisel was born October 23, 1945, in Buffalo. He attended public schools there until he entered the Nichols School, where he was editor of the yearbook and a varsity athlete.

He moved on to Harvard, where he took his degree magna cum laude in government but declined to take Henry Kissinger’s course because the reading list was too imposing. He attended civil rights marches in Boston during the city’s busing controversy and then moved to Columbia, at the time in its own storied phase of upheaval.

Upon earning his Ph.D, the 25-year-old Maisel was hired by Colby on a one-year, non-renewable contract that lasted half a century. At the time, Waterville, Maine, was a mill town with a Hathaway shirt factory and with the fumes from the Scott Paper Co. plant in nearby Winslow. Within days of getting his job at Colby, he had a call from Bill Hathaway, and he met with the Senate candidate and his young aide, Angus King. Hathaway lost the 1972 race to Bill Cohen, but Maisel won the friendship of King. Along the way, he worked for George Mitchell, establishing yet another relationship that redounded to the advantage of both Colby and its students.

Mr. Maisel’s political instincts were sharp but not impeccable.

In the fall of 1975, Jimmy Carter visited Maine. This was the period when the former governor of Georgia, who had earlier stumped contestants on the What’s My Line television show, was largely unknown. Mr. Maisel met him and then told an upper-level class that Mr. Carter was delusional, saying, “I just met some guy from Georgia who thinks he’s going to be the next president.”

In the midst of launching his academic career, Maisel and his first wife, Mary Lou Michael, raised their children, Dana and Josh, in an extended Colby family. When Maisel and the children moved to campus, Mayflower Hill became the space to grow and be surrounded by values of education, exploration, and, of course, athletics.

In 1994 he married Patrice Franko, the love of his life. Their 30-year marriage brought him total fulfillment. Their mutual love of family, Colby and Colby students, of friends, of Great Pond, of golf, and of travel would have filled many lifetimes. They were particularly fortunate to have the opportunity, through two distinguished Fulbrights and teaching in the CBB program, to teach in the Philippines, Brazil, and London. Maisel and Franko treasure the memories of welcoming family, friends, students, and many dear alums to their home on Great Pond for legendary graduation parties, much sought-after invitations to their annual Fourth of July party, Jewish holiday celebrations, and pop-up lakeside cocktails.

He was committed to outdoor life in Maine from his attendance at Camp Kennebec in the 1950s to his living on Great Pond for more than 40 years.

Maisel was an active member of Beth Israel Congregation, in Waterville, and served several terms on the synagogue board, including as president in the 1980s. In 2024 he led the successful $3.7-million Foundation and the Future Capital Campaign that guaranteed the financial stability of the congregation for generations to come.

One of his most enduring projects was as editor of Jews in American Politics, a collection of essays that remains one of the principal resources for students of that topic. He produced several scholarly books on his own and edited several volumes of The Parties Respond: Changes in American Parties and Campaigns, comprised of essays that followed presidential elections.

Maisel died of an aggressive intestinal cancer. In his last months, he was determined, as Winston Churchill put it, to “stay in the pub” till “closing time.” At Maisel’s closing time, his family, friends, and protégés flooded him with concern befitting the final days of a New England legend. The pub would not be the same without him.

In addition to his wife, Patrice, he is survived by his grown children, daughter Dana Maisel Anderson (Erik Anderson); son Joshua Louis Maisel (Eden Maisel); grandsons Conrad, Gustaf, Leopold, Weber, and Tyler; 20 nieces and nephews and their partners; many grand-nieces and nephews, and a large number of cousins; his mother-in-law; brothers and sisters-in-law. He was predeceased by two sisters, Patricia Maisel Cotsen and Elizabeth Maisel Schulman, and their husbands.

Sandy Maisel liked to say that accomplished political experts need not know very much – as long as they knew 10 people who did. For scores of renowned political analysts, Maisel was not only one of those 10 but the most consulted, most insightful, and most generous one. For them, as for his students, friends, and family, the loss is enormous.

A memorial was held at Beth Israel Synagogue, in Waterville, Friday, December 13. A spring celebration of life will be held at Colby College Saturday, April 26, 2025, at 11 a.m.

Arrangements are in the care of Veilleux-Redington-Lawry Brothers, 8 Elm Street, Waterville, where memories of Sandy may be shared, and an online register book can be signed by visiting http://www.vrlfuneralhome.com.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Franko-Maisel Fund or the Sandy Maisel Fund at the Goldfarb Center, Colby College or the Sandy Maisel Children’s Fund at Beth Israel.

RICHARD PELLERIN JR.

SANGERVILLE – Richard “Rick” Pellerin Jr. 65, of Sangerville, passed away Friday, December 13, 2024, at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, in Boston, Massachusetts, following a year-long battle with Leukemia. He was born in Portland, and raised in Waterville by the late Richard “Dick” and Elizabeth “Betty” (Lewis) Pellerin.

He graduated from Waterville High School where he was a standout hockey and soccer player. He graduated from Vermont Technical College with a degree in mechanical engineering.

He moved to the Sangerville area in the early 1980s and began work at Fayscott. He then spent over 35 years working at Numberall Stamp and Tool before retiring. Rick was involved in many organizations to include The Big Pine Gun Club, The Four Winds Snowmobile Club, and The Mt Kineo Lodge #109 of the Masons. He also served as a selectman for the town of Sangerville and served on the Guilford and Sangerville Sanitary District Board.

Rick was an avid hunter and enjoyed spending time at his favorite place in Ripley. He also enjoyed Cowboy Action Shooting, Skeet, Trap, Sporting Clays, and the Winter Pistol League at the Big Pine Gun Club. He passed his knowledge of hunting and shooting down to his children and grandchildren to ensure safe practices could be continued to future generations. He also enjoyed making apple cider every fall at the Goulette’s home.

Rick is survived by his wife Karlene (Clukey) Pellerin, of Sangerville; sons Frank (Amy) Pellerin, of Fairfield, Richard III (Shelby), of Dexter, James Oldfield, of Old Lyme, Connecticut; grandchildren Richard IV and Grady, of Dexter, and Delana Green Oldfield, of Old Lyme, Connecticut; his godson Alex Pellerin, of Massachusetts and goddaughter Jessica Breton, of Dover-Foxcroft; several aunts and cousins.

He was predeceased by his parents, as well as his brother Frank and sister Ann.

At Rick’s request there will be no funeral or services.

If anyone would like to make a donation in his name or memory a check can be mailed to the Big Pine Club, P.O. Box 6, Guilford ME 04443.

JEFFREY J. MICHAUD

FAIRFIELD – Jeffrey J. Michaud, 67, passed away. Jeff was born on August 5, 1957, son of Randolph and Rose (Corbin) Michaud.

He graduated from Water­ville High School, where he played varsity hockey. Jeff continued to college, graduating with a degree in electronics. His knowledge in the field took him across the world. He retired from the electronics department at Marden’s Industrial in 2022.

Jeff was a free spirit his entire life. He was a father, grandfather, brother, and friend. He was an accomplished drummer and musician in the Central Maine area for many years. Spending time with his family, playing golf with his grandson, watching sports on Sundays, and riding his motorcycle were some of Jeff’s most loved activities.

He was predeceased by both his parents and his brother Richard Michaud.

Jeff is survived by his two daughters, Samantha Michaud, of Fairfield, and Sarah Chadbourn with her husband Jeffrey Chadbourne, of West Gardiner; grandsons, Jeffrey, Ryan, Tylor, and Collin; sisters, Sandra Locklin, and Ann Michaud with her partner Jenn.

In following his wishes there will not be a funeral, instead, there will be a celebration of his life in the spring of 2025.

Please visit Jeff’s memorial page at https://svremembrancecenter.com/obituaries/jeffrey-michaud where condolences, photos, and special memories may be shared.

LOGAN BOLDUC

SOUTH CHINA – Logan Bolduc, 25, passed away recently, in South China. Born on August 3, 1999, at Red­ington-Fairview Hospital, in Skowhegan. He was the son of Kim Bolduc-
Bartlett and Kenneth Andrews and brother to Zachary Bartlett.

Logan brought joy and laughter into the lives of everyone who knew him.

Logan’s journey through life was marked by his infectious spirit and vibrant personality. He graduated from Messalonskee High School, in Oakland, in 2017, where he left an indelible mark on his classmates and teachers alike. His quick wit and ability to make others laugh made him a treasured friend to many.

Following his education, Logan joined the workforce, where he worked at Hannaford, in South China. He took pride in his job and was known for his friendly demeanor and dedication to his work.

Outside of his professional life, Logan loved music and video games. These interests not only provided him with joy but also allowed him to connect with others who shared his enthusiasm. Music was a constant in his life, and he could often be found sharing his favorite playlists with friends or discovering new artists.

Logan’s legacy will be remembered by those who loved him dearly. He was a beacon of light, known for his ability to bring smiles to the faces of everyone around him. His playful spirit made life a little brighter for all whom he encountered.

Although Logan’s time with us was far too brief, he left a mark that will not soon fade. He will be profoundly missed by his family, friends, and all who had the privilege of knowing him.

Services to honor Logan’s life will be held at a later date. In the meantime, we invite all who knew him to share their memories and celebrate the spirited life he lived.