WINCHESTER — Selectmen will go into town elections in March with a four-member board following the death of one of their own earlier this month. Selectman Raymond C. Williams, who was appointed to the board in April, died at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon on Dec. 15 after a sudden illness. He was 59 years old.
“We’re sad about the passing of Ray. He was a very good man, and a good selectman,” Selectmen Chairwoman Roberta A. Fraser said Monday.
“We’re sad about the passing of Ray. He was a very good man, and a good selectman,” Selectmen Chairwoman Roberta A. Fraser said Monday.
At this point there is no plan to appoint someone to fill Williams’ seat on the board, as town elections are closing in at about 10 or 11 weeks out, she said.
Instead, selectmen will meet as a four-member board until the March election, when it’s expected voters will elect someone to fill what will be a one-year term, she said.
“We figured by the time we go through the whole process we usually follow, there would not be time for anyone to serve anyway,” she said.
Williams filled the position left vacant by former selectman Kenneth Berthiaume, who resigned at the end of January 2016, citing health reasons including a hearing impairment.
Berthiaume was in the first year of a three-year term. Notice of his resignation came after the filing period for elected town offices had closed, which led to the position not being on the March 2016 election ballot.
Williams was one of eight candidates considered for appointment to the one-year term.
Williams grew up in New Jersey and served in the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division before being honorably discharged in 1981, according to his obituary.
He worked for 25 years as a police officer in the Florence Township Police Department in New Jersey and then for the U.S. Department of Justice for 10 years, his obituary said.
He retired from the Florence Township Police Department as a sergeant in 2004, according to a post on the agency’s Facebook page.
During his time with the department, his assignments included evidence technician, field training officer, physical fitness instructor, firearms instructor, scuba team member, tactical team member and defensive tactics instructor, the Facebook post stated.
At the time of his death, Williams worked at Keene State College’s dining services.
According to his obituary, Williams enjoyed fishing, woodworking, photography, playing pool and spending time with his dog, Cinta. He is survived by three daughters and a brother, all of New Jersey, as well as other family members.
Meghan Foley can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1436, or mfoley@keenesentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @MFoleyKS.
What's needed are people to run that have a conscience. Look around, talk to people, its important to this towns future. Wonder if the town hall is ever going to post the selectmen's meetings on there web site again.
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