Obituary of Richard E. Gagnon

Richard E. Gagnon, 82, of Glastonbury, husband of Rita (Cyr) Gagnon, died on Saturday May 14, 2011 surrounded by his family. He was born on Sept. 5, 1928 in New Britain, CT., son of the late Jean and Rose (Gaudette) Gagnon. He was an army veteran of the Korean War and worked for the Jarvis Construction Company in Manchester, CT. before retiring in 1992 as a Construction Foreman. He was a former member of the Lions Club in Glastonbury, where he volunteered at the yearly pancake breakfast. He also enjoyed playing cards with his buddies once a week in years past. He loved to go to Las Vegas with his wife several times a year which they did for many years until they were no longer able to travel. At that point, he started to go the casinos in Connecticut. He looked forward to the one day a week when his son, Maurice, would take him there for an afternoon. His scooter gave him the independence to do so many things that he wouldn't have been able to do. In addition to his wife of almost 60 years, he leaves behind his daughter, Yvonne (Gagnon) Leger and her husband Paul of East Hartford, his son Maurice and his wife Leslie of Glastonbury, his son Paul of East Hartford, his son John and his wife Sherri of Griswold, his sisters; Anita Cefaratti and her husband Joseph of Maryland, Avis Oberempt and her husband Charles of Southington, his sister-in-law Cecile Jennings of New Hampshire, as well as his eight grandchildren, Dan Leger, Nicole Tardif, Malerie Lisboa, Matt Leger, Alexandria Gagnon, Jake Gagnon, Gregory Gagnon and Conor Gagnon, four great grandchildren; Sabrina Lisboa, Emma Leger, Leo Leger, Dominic Lisboa and another great grandchild who will be joining the family in a few months, and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother Maurice Gagnon, his sisters, Elaine Lavallee, Luella Schmidt, Claire Meyers, Yvette Farrelly, Rita Bohn and Velma Gagnon and his sister-in-law Gertrude Fontaine. The family would like to thank the staff at Hartford Hospital for the care given to him. Their professionalism and caring helped us to get through this difficult time. We would also like to thank the staff at the Veterans Administration in Newington for their assistance in keeping him so independent. Funeral service will be Wednesday May 18 at 10:15am from the Mulryan Funeral Home, 725 Hebron Ave., Glastonbury, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11am in St. Paul Church, 2577 Main St., Glastonbury. Burial with military honors will follow in St. James Cemetery, Glastonbury. Friends may call at the funeral home on Tuesday May 17 from 5-8pm. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Disabled American Veterans, Attention Gift Processing, P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45250-0301 or the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758516, Topeka, KN 66675-8516. For online tributes please visit www.mulryanfh.com