MARCIA A. (PHELPS) RIETH
October 24, 1952 ~ August 20, 2020 (Age 67)

Marcia A. (Phelps) Rieth, 67, died Thursday, August 20, 2020, in her home, after being stricken ill.

She is survived by three sons: Shawn W. Rieth, and his wife, Monique, of Fitzwilliam, NH, Mark E. Rieth, and his wife, Jen, of Baldwinville, and James “Jay” H. Rieth, and his wife, Katie, of Winchendon; seven grandchildren: Everett, Sebastian, Wyatt, Myles, Mya, Morgan, and Madison; in-laws, nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her loving husband of 22 years, Wayne P. Rieth, who died in 1996, and their granddaughter, Makaela V. Rieth, who died in 2003. Two brothers, H. Edward Phelps, and Richard S. Phelps, also predeceased her.

Marcia was born in Worcester and raised in West Boylston, daughter of the late Harold S. and Isabelle L. (Stevens) Phelps. She was a graduate of West Boylston High School, and attended Mount Wachusett Community College.

Upon their marriage in 1974, Marcia and Wayne settled in Clinton, and started their family. In 1989, they relocated to Winchendon, where Marcia remained until moving to Gardner 15 years ago.

For more than 15 years, she was employed by the SimplexGrinnell Company, as a dispatcher. Previously, she had worked for many years at Zayre/Ames Distribution Center, at their former Clinton location.

A member of the First Congregational Church of Gardner, Marica was a kind, caring woman, who was affectionately called “mom” by many of her co-workers through the years. Aside from “wife” and “mother,” her greatest title was that of “Grammy” to her beautiful grandchildren. Time spent in their company was never wasted, for it was what brought her greatest happiness.

Marcia’s family will honor and remember her life beginning with calling hours, on Monday, August 24, 2020, from 4:00-6:00 p.m. in the McNally & Watson Funeral Home, 304 Church St., Clinton. The next morning, a graveside service will be held, on Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. in St. John’s Cemetery, Parker Road, Lancaster. All are invited to attend. In accordance with current guidelines, the use of face masks, and the practice of social distancing, will be required at the funeral home and cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the Rieth family suggests that memorial donations be made to the American Diabetes Association, 260 Cochituate Road, Suite 200, Framingham, MA 01701.

NORMAN W. CARLSON
January 30, 1943 ~ August 23, 2020 (Age 77)

Norman W. Carlson, 77, of 27 Neale Road, South Royalston, died peacefully Sunday morning, August 23, 2020 with his daughter at his side.

He was born in Gardner on January 30, 1943, son of the late Walter and Margaret E. (LeMote) Carlson and was a resident of South Royalston his entire life. He was a graduate of Athol high School.

Norman worked as a tool grinder for many years. He worked at Union Twist Drill and later worked for several years at Niagra Cutter in Athol until his retirement 16 years ago. An avid hunter and golfer, he was a member of the former Winchendon Golf Course and was a member of senior golf leagues.

He leaves two children, Michelle E. Thompson of Carrollton, OH and Norman W. Carlson, Jr. and his wife Madilyn of Baxley, GA; a grandson, Tyler L. Carlson and a sister, Virginia E. Wirzbicki and her husband Mike of Gardner.

Funeral services will be private and at the convenience of the family.

There are no calling hours.

Stone-Ladeau Funeral Home, 343 Central Street, Winchendon is directing arrangements.

FRANCINE T. PERLA
1948 ~ August 17, 2020

Francine T. (Wirtz) Perla, died Monday, August 17 at her home surrounded by her loving family after a long battle with lung cancer.

Daughter of Hubert and Theresa (Massie) Wirtz, she was born in Chicoutimi, Quebec in Canada and moved to Fitchburg, MA with her family when she was four years old.

For the majority of her life, Francine performed quality control for various plastic manufacturing companies including DuPont, Mylor and White's Precision. Before her illness, she was employed at Advanced Prototype in Leominster.

Francine was a devoted Christian and spent countless hours reading the Bible and loved going to Bible study each week. She was a kind person, with a quiet demeanor and gentle soul, but maintained a quick and dry sense of humor until the very end. She enjoyed the simple joys in life – time spent with family and dear friends, reading to her grandson, homemade desserts, playing fetch with her dog and her morning prayer sessions.

Ms. Perla leaves behind her beloved sons, Nicholas A. Perla of Leominster, Tommy J. Perla Jr., his wife Melanie and grandson Thomas, all of Leominster; her best friend Betty Lynch and godson Dillan Lynch of Athol. Of her nine siblings, she is survived by three brothers: Hubert Wirtz and Peter Wirtz of Fitchburg, Lionel Wirtz and his wife Gloria of Winchendon, and one sister Andree Geiselman of New Hampshire; two brothers, John Wirtz and Louis Wirtz, and three sisters, Gisele White, Lisa Bresnahan and Madeline Wirtz predeceased her. She also leaves behind several nieces and nephews whom she loved dearly.

Calling hours will held at Silas F. Richardson & Son Funeral Home, 106 West Street, Leominster on Thursday, August 27, 2020 from 5 – 7 PM. A funeral service will be held on Friday, August 28, 2020 at 11 AM, in the funeral home. Burial will be private at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Fitchburg, MA. www.richardsonfuneralhome.net.

LEO A. PAUL
April 9, 1925 ~ August 25, 2020 (Age 95)

GARDNER - Leo Alfred Paul, aged 95, of Gardner, formerly of Winchendon, died August 25, 2020 due to complications from a stroke.

Mr. Paul was born in Lancaster, Massachusetts on April 9, 1925 to Alfred and Mary Anna (Draleau) Paul. He was the second of 15 children and was the oldest son.

On Valentine's Day 1945, Leo eloped with the girl-next-door, Jeanette "Sally" Brow. He and his wife were happily married for 65 years until Mrs. Paul's death in 2010.

He leaves his dearly loved children and their families, Judith (Paul) Whitaker and her husband Cal Whitaker of California, Sharon (Paul) Harvey and husband Paul Harvey, Jr. of Virginia, Bruce M. Paul and wife Neva Paul of Gardner, Tammy Paul-Gough and husband Kevin Gough of Connecticut, and Sally J. Paul of Gardner with whom he lived for the past several years. He is predeceased by his son, Ronald James Paul, who died as an infant in 1946.

He also leaves four grandchildren, including his devoted granddaughter Shannon (Harvey) Stickney and her husband Henry Stickney of East Templeton; as well as his seven great­ grandchildren and three great-great grandchildren.

Leo is also survived by his brother George Paul of Templeton.

Mr. Paul served his country in the Navy during World War II where he was stationed aboard the USS Baltimore. He received training at Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston.

He worked for many years as a truck driver and later in the construction field as a brick mason and carpenter. He retired in 1989 from the Simplex Time Recorder Company where he worked for several years in the maintenance department. He was formerly employed by A. Jandris & Sons, and at the P. J. Keating Company.

Leo was a life-time member and past commander of the American Legion, Winchendon Post 193, as well as a volunteer Worcester County Deputy Sheriff. He was an avid reader, who also enjoyed camping, wood crafts and word puzzles. But his favorite activity was going out to eat with his family.

Calling hours will be held on Friday, September 4, 2020 from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. in Stone-Ladeau Funeral Home, 343 Central Street, Winchendon. Members of Eugene M. Connor Post #193 American Legion will conduct military honors at 6:30 P.M. Due to the corona virus pandemic, precautionary measures will be in place including social distancing and the use of non-medical masks.

The funeral will be private.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital at stjude.org; Shriners Hospitals for Children at shrinershospitalsforchildren.org; or No Kid Hungry at nokidhungry.org.

ROBERT L. ZBIKOWSKI
July 2, 1943 ~ August 14, 2020 (Age 77)

WINCHENDON- Robert L. Zbikowski, 77, of Winchendon, passed away unexpectedly Friday, August 14, in his home.

Robert was born July 2, 1943, in Leominster, son of the late Stella Cormier and the late Joseph Zbikowski. He leaves his wife with whom he would have celebrated 52 years of marriage on September 7, Brenda (Bean) Zbikowski; two daughters, Tonia Young and husband, Jason of Winchendon and Alissa Clark and husband, Kevin of Gardner; three grandchildren, Tyler, Kiley and Evan Young; one brother, Joseph Zbikowski and wife, Linda of Ashburnham; one sister, Patricia Taglialavore of Chicago; several nieces and nephews. Robert was predeceased by his sister Stella Pedigo.

Robert (Bob) attended Waterford Street School in Gardner and graduated from Worcester Trade School for Drafting. He then furthered his education at Mount Wachusett Community College and Salem StateCollege, earning a Bachelor's degree in Education. He served in the US Marine Corps as a mortarman and then continued his service in the Army National Guard, where he retired as a Sergeant First Class. Bob was proud of his military service and truly had a love for his country. He would be the first to tell anyone that becoming a Marine changed his life for the better and set him on a path for success.

Bob was a teacher for over 35 years in the Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District. At Oakmont Regional High School he taught business, typing, and accounting. While there, Bob also taught driver’s education and was a graduation advisor for many Spartans. He then transitioned to Overlook Middle School as a computer teacher, retiring in 2002. Throughout his teaching career, Bob held many leadership roles in the Ashburnham-Westminster Teachers Association. He was a very active member of the AWTA; serving on various committees, a building representative, and Vice President of the Association. Bob spent several summers sharing his knowledge with fellow educators at the annual Massachusetts Teachers Association conference in Williamstown. Prior to his retirement, Bob became the local representative for the Massachusetts Teachers Association Retirement Board in which he guided many educators through the retirement process. He served in this role until 2018, well into his own retirement. Bob had a passion for helping others and he was always willing to give back to the teaching profession.

Bob served on the Board of Selectmen in Winchendon with visions of enacting positive change in his community. He truly believed in being a voice for the people and was willing to speak with anyone about their concerns, ideas, and dreams for the progress of Winchendon. Even after leaving public office, he was active in encouraging other townspeople to vote, as well as rallying for the local Democratic party candidates. In his spare time, Bob enjoyed collecting vintage lanterns, antique hunting, and spent several years participating in Civil War reenactments. He was the driving force behind Winchendon’s first ever reenactment held at the fields on Elmwood Rd. He was an avid learner, forward thinker, and always wanted the best for others; especially his grandchildren of whom he was very proud. Bob and his wife Brenda loved to attend their games and events, whether it was on the baseball field or on the pool deck. Sunday dinners and endless card games with his family were some of his fondest times. He cherished these moments to be together with the ones he loved. Bob will be greatly missed by those who knew and loved him.

Calling hours are Thursday, August 27 from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. at Mack Family Funeral Homes, Lamoureux-Smith & Poliks Chapel, 105 Central St., Gardner. Funeral and burial will be private.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 3 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701 or by visiting www.cancer.org or to the American Heart Association, 300 5th Ave., Waltham, MA 02451or by visiting www.heart.org.