Henry D. Granger
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Henry D. (Hank, Bo, Poppa, HennyPop) Granger, of North Egremont, MA and Venice, FL, died peacefully at home on November 2, 2020, after a quiet and courageous battle with cancer. He was 83.
Born on December 7, 1936 in New Rochelle, NY to R. Gordon and Catherine (Dodge) Granger, he grew up in Sheffield and North Egremont, MA. He attended Holderness School in Plymouth, NH and was a graduate of the University of Connecticut's School of Engineering. He married Marilyn Adele Peck of North Egremont, MA in June 1958. He spent his early career as a civil engineer, employed by the State of Connecticut and then DelaBitta-Basola Construction Company, Inc., designing and constructing bridges and dams. In 1966, he returned to the Berkshires and joined Richard (Dick) Kelly of Great Barrington, MA to establish 'Kelly & Granger', a successful land surveying firm serving Western Massachusetts. The firm was sold in 1982 to C. Michael Parsons, and became Kelly, Granger, Parsons & Associates, Inc. In "retirement", Henry established a lucrative land management consulting firm, H.D. Granger & Company, where he supervised the construction of a large estate in Copake Lake, NY, as well as the design, construction and installation of a seaplane ramp at lakeside. He later developed a partnership with his lifelong friend, Raymond Real, to establish Northeast Technical Associates, Inc., a real estate appraisal firm, which he later co-owned with his son, Kevin. He served for 31 years on the Board of Directors of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.
Henry devoted much of his adult life to community service. He served as Treasurer of the Kiwanis Club of Sheffield and is fondly remembered for organizing the annual fundraiser snowmobile "grass drags", greeting attendees and directing car parking at the annual Berkshire Choral Festival, and chasing down donations, always with a story and a smile. He was a very active member of the Masonic Brotherhood through Cincinnatus Lodge A.F. & A. M. of Great Barrington, MA and was a Melha Shriner of Springfield, MA. Henry was a founding member of the Southern Berkshire Volunteer Ambulance Squad and the Southern Berkshire Sno-Dusters. He served the Town of Egremont as a Cemetery Commissioner and member of the Board of Assessors for many years.
His love of antique and classic cars brought him to serve in a leadership position for many years as Treasurer of Olde Yankee Street Rods and Classic Cruisers. He owned a variety of cars and motorcycles over the years and was most proud of his 1934 Plymouth PE "Deluxe" 4-door sedan, which he and Kevin refurbished and lovingly named "Harriet." His passion for flying led him to obtain his private pilot's license and log many hours in a Piper Cherokee 140 whose call letters were N5733U, that on the radio were represented as '3-3-Uniform', and that his children humorously coined '3-3-Underwear'. He was a proud member of Walt Kolodza's "KBs". Aside from being a car buff and amateur pilot, Henry was a member of National Camping Travelers, Inc. and spent much vacation time traveling the east coast of the United States in an RV with his family.
In addition to his wife of 62 years, Marilyn (Peck), of North Egremont, MA, Henry is survived by his children: Karen Granger Butler (Tom Palivoda), Kevin (Susan Beauchaine) Granger, and Kelly Granger (Dan) Belair, all of North Egremont; 6 grandchildren - Shea Butler (Patrick Brosnihan) and James Butler (Katherine Dilworth) of South Boston, MA, Kristofer Granger (Monique Belair) of Housatonic, MA, and Daniel (Erika Pivero) Stubbs of Sandisfield, MA, Brandon Stubbs of Pittsfield, MA and Courtney Stubbs (Sean Guy) of Breckenridge, CO; and 5 great-grandchildren - Savannah, Griffin and Jaxson Granger & Carter and Walker Stubbs; two brothers, Frank B. (Eileen Redding) Granger of Guilford, CT and Richard D. (Persis Rogers) Granger of Warrensburg, NY and Trenton, FL; as well as in-laws, outlaws, nieces, nephews, and cousins.
The family will hold a private graveside ceremony. A Celebration of Life service will be held in the summer of 2021.
As an expression of sympathy, memorial contributions may be sent to HospiceCare in The Berkshires, Inc., Southern Berkshire Ambulance Service, or the Egremont Fire Department c/o Finnerty & Stevens Funeral Home, 426 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230. To send remembrances to his family go to www.finnertyandstevens.com
The family extends a heartfelt thanks to Trisha, Jess, Erica, Audrey, Sue, Ann, Lynn, Rich and Dr. Sean Mullally for their love and compassionate care.