Wilfrid Boucher , Jr.

Wilfrid George Boucher Jr., known as Will, Willie, Wilbur, and Butch, was born May 18, 1937, the 10th and final child of Wilfrid and Regina Boucher in Manchester, NH. Will spent a happy childhood in a hard-working, hard-playing, French-Canadian family. When Wilfrid was 6, his family moved from Manchester’s West Side to a grand Victorian house on the East Side, which he then inhabited for 77 years. Wilfrid attended Ecole Saint George and later graduated from Bishop Bradley High School in 1955. He went on to Villanova University, graduating in 1959 with a degree in accounting and showing considerable talent as a jazz drummer. Returning to New Hampshire, Will joined the Army National Guard, serving his country in uniform as a comptroller until he retired in 1992 and attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He had known Annette Labadie for years but after reconnecting in 1963 love blossomed. Wilfrid and Annette were married on February 20, 1965. They had three sons: Marc, Michael, and Matthew. Matthew lived only a brief three years. His untimely death remained an ongoing sadness, but his memory always burned bright as a source of hope and love. Wilfrid was dedicated to service. He was always involved on the boards of the schools his children attended, and he had a long period of involvement with the Boy Scouts, numerous civic organizations and his local church. One of Wilfrid’s greatest pleasures was the camp that he built on Bear Pond in Alton, NH. This became an amazing refuge for his family, as well as a place to hunt and fish with his friends. Wilfrid had an innate gift for connecting with and charming others and making them feel loved. Many, many people unrelated to the Bouchers called and considered Will and Annette “their Pepere and Memere”. He and Annette moved to Rochester, NY in June of this year and enjoyed a great summer in his new home at St. John’s Meadows. Wilfrid died on Saturday, November 27, lovingly surrounded by his wife, sons, and their families at the time of his death. Wilfrid is survived by his immediate family: his wife Annette, his sons Marc and Michael, their wives Jeanine and Lynne, and his four beloved grandchildren Kateri, Jonah, Priya and Anand; and his extended family: brother- and sister-in-law Richard and Louise Lavallee, their children Christopher and Gregory, and sister-in-law Claire and her children Cathy and Michael. A 1pm (EST) service, with reception to follow, will be held at Spiritus Christi Church in Rochester on Saturday, December 4th, which will be live streamed at: https://live.spirituschristi.org/ A TBA reception will be held in his hometown of Manchester, NH with a burial to follow in New Hampshire Veterans Cemetery, Boscawen, NH. Memorial donations may be made to: The Moore Center in Manchester, NH (www.moorecenter.org) serving people with intellectual, developmental, and personal challenges (which served Will’s son Matthew during his life), or St. Joseph's Neighborhood Center in Rochester, NY (www.sjncenter.org), providing comprehensive physical and mental health services to uninsured and under-insured people in and around Rochester (where son Michael works).