1929-2013

VENICE, Fla. — Ralph W. Fontaine, 83, of Englewood, Fla., passed away July 1, after a lengthy and courageous battle with multiple sclerosis.

Born Nov. 20, 1929, in Sabattus, to Emile and Clara St. Laurent Fontaine, Ralph attended the Lane School in Greene, where he would meet his wife of 64 years, Lucienne Plourde. The two raised dairy cattle and sold milk from the Lane Road farm once owned by Ralph’s parents.

A man of many skills, Ralph found time to cut meat for a local store and drive trucks for Agway, before leaving farming to work for Dumais Construction and Nason Plumbing and Heating. In the late 1970s, he and Lou turned their Small Point cottage into a year-round home and Ralph became a pipefitter at Bath Iron Works, retiring in 1995. Over the years, Ralph became a skilled woodsman, a talent he developed in adolescence that would serve him through retirement.

Ralph and Lou enjoyed many years at Small Point, where friends and relatives were drawn by the good company and atmosphere surrounding first their trailer, tent and campfire, then their cottage, and finally, their home overlooking Head Beach. Ralph made a ritual of the traditional shore dinner, buying the biggest lobsters with the hardest shells he could find.

Ralph was also an avid Country Western music fan. Over the years, he and Lou took countless trips across the country to see their favorite stars perform at various places, including the Grand Ole Opry. In 1997, Lou and Ralph continued their travels, buying their home in Englewood, Fla., where they would enjoy retirement in the sunshine state.

Ralph is survived by his loving wife, Lou, who cared for him unwaveringly until his final breath. He is also survived by his daughter, Joan Greenwood-Woeste and husband, Frank, of Blacksburg, Va., and Venice, Fla.; daughter, Claire Hanson and husband, Thomas, of Winthrop; grandchildren, Sean Greenwood of Sabattus, Christopher Greenwood and wife, Stacy, of Chattanooga, Tenn., Melissa Goody and husband, Carlton, of Poland, Laura Wolgin and husband, Michael, of Apex, N.C., and Rachel Groenhout and husband, Erik, of Mount Vernon; and great-grandchildren, James, Joseph and Lily Grace Greenwood, Mia, Lila and Milo Wolgin, and Willow and Hazel Groenhout.

Ralph is also survived by his sister, Rita Beaule, and sisters-in-law, Carmen Dube and Agathe Poulin and her husband, Romeo, all of Auburn, and several nieces and nephews.

He was predeceased by his infant daughter, Theresa; and brothers, Emilien Fontaine, who died serving in World War II, and Leon Fontaine.