1944 – 2015

KENNEBUNK — Martha Peters, known as Marty to her friends and Muffy to her family, of Sanford, died Sunday, Oct. 25, after a long illness.

The eldest of seven children of Ivan and Lillian Richard of Mexico, she was born April 28, 1944, in Rumford, a few weeks before her father left for World War II. Martha attended St. Therese’s Elementary School in Mexico, and was a graduate of Mexico High School, Class of 1962.

After high school she attended business school in Minneapolis, Minn., and then worked as a secretary at the Pentagon before marrying and returning to Maine. A longtime resident of Sanford, Martha was an active member of the Sanford Emblem Club. She loved raising money for scholarship funds and loved the fun she had with her Emblem Club sisters across the state. She was proud to serve as State of Maine Emblem Club President from 2009 to 2010.

She was a generous, giving, joyous person who was willing to lend a hand where needed, especially supporting battered women and family shelters. A voracious reader, she was also a professional artisan, creating beautiful baskets, jewelry, and knitting. She never met a flea market she didn’t like and loved selling her own items at markets and craft fairs throughout the state.

Her father and mother, and her brother, Mike Richard, predeceased her.

Martha will be greatly missed by her surviving sisters and their families: Peg Richard of Portland, Barbara MacGregor of Rumford, Norma Richard of Asheville, N.C., Sue Richard of Mexico, and Terry Richard of Dixfield; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.