Doris Christine "Chris" McMahon (Newhall) Obituary (1925

ROCKLAND - Doris Christine McMahon, 86, died Monday, May 21, 2012, at Maine Medical Center in Portland, following a brief illness. Born in Rockland, November 20, 1925, Christine was the daughter of Edgar L. and Frances V. Burton Newhall. Educated in Rockland schools, Chris was a 1944 graduate of Rockland High School. During the years immediately following high school, Chris worked at Sealtest Ice Cream in Rockland. Encouraged by her friend, Ruth McMahon, Chris began corresponding with Ruth's brother, Doug, while he served in the United States Army in the South Pacific. When Doug returned from the service they often met on Main Street as Chris walked home from work. After a short courtship, Chris and Doug were married in Rockland on September 14, 1947. A devoted mother, homemaker and wife, Chris was involved in her children's lives and activities while they were growing up. She created a warm and welcoming home. Her kitchen was often filled with the smell of fresh-baked cookies which drew in friends and neighbors for coffee and treats. The family kitchen was always a lively hub and the center of the home for her family. While raising her children, Chris also helped out in the office of the family business, C.F. McMahon and Son, Oil, Heating & Cooling. After retiring, Chris and Doug enjoyed gardening and maintaining their lovely home. They made several trips including various cruises and sailing charters to Alaska and the Caribbean, trips to Europe, and numerous road trips throughout the United States. For more than 15 years, they enjoyed wintering on Kiawah Island in South Carolina. Over the years, Chris maintained a large circle of friends. She was a long time member of the Rockland Congregational Church and an active participant in the former Odds-N-Ends Club. For many years Chris and Doug were active members of the Rockland Yacht Club. They enjoyed cruising the Maine coast on their Bristol 29 with a close knit group of friends. Their small fleet was appropriately named "The Fog Runners." Additionally Chris continued to enjoy regular gatherings with her classmates from the class of '44. As recently as last week, the group enjoyed a reunion luncheon hosted by Bartlett Woods. Chris moved from her beloved Waldo Avenue home, to Bartlett Woods in Rockland on Memorial Day weekend, 2007. As a resident at Bartlett Woods, she made many new friends and reconnected with several of her long-time friends as they moved to the facility. Chris embraced the family and community of Bartlett Woods, enjoying the activities and the social living experience. Chris was pre-deceased by her husband, Doug, of 55 years in 2003, her brother Roger Newhall, and a step-sister Anna Warmington. She is survived by one daughter, Nancy M. Wing and her husband Michael of Yarmouth, two sons, Charles E. 'Mac' McMahon and his wife Janet of Rockland, Michael E. McMahon and his wife Patricia of Rockport; seven grandchildren, Jeanne Flanders and her husband Michael, Katie Woods and her husband Matthew, Sarah Seavey and her husband Christopher, Nicholas McMahon and his fiancee Michele Demko, Jessica McMahon, Ian Wing, and Emily Wing; two great-grandchildren, Camille and Aiden Woods; two step-sisters, Elaine Hubbell of Camden, Lois Doherty of Massachusetts; two sisters-in-law Charlotte Newhall of Rockland, Ruth McMahon Knapp of Farmington; two nieces, Mary Newhall Boss and her husband Richard of Hopkinton, NH, Susan Knapp Taylor and her husband Paul of Brunswick; and one nephew, Gerald Newhall and his wife Claudette of Braintree, MA. Friends and relatives are invited to visit from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 29, 2012 at Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland. A funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, May 30th, at the Rockland Congregational Church, 180 Limerock Street, Rockland. The Reverend Seth D. Jones will officiate. Private interment will be in Oak Hill Cemetery, Camden. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Abiding Memorial Fund, C/O Rockland Congregational Church, P.O. Box 554, Rockland, ME 04841, or the Bob Gagnon Cancer Care Fund, C/O PenBay Healthcare, 22 White Street, Rockland, ME 04841. 2d:{"dateTime":