|
Laconia-----Reginald A. Bisson, 97, died at the St. Francis Healthcare Center on Thursday, October 20, 2005. He was predeceased in 2001 by his beloved wife, Adrienne.
Mr. Bisson was born April 20, 1908 in Newton Center, MA, the only son of Wilfred and Lora Bisson. He was a long time resident of Laconia. After he completed grammar and high schools in Laconia, he entered Norwich University and after a year at Norwich, he transferred to M.I.T., graduating with honors in 1930 with an S. B. degree in Building Construction and Engineering. Following his graduation, Mr. Bisson spent a year working in skyscraper construction in Manhattan with the Thompson Starrett Co. He then performed four years of field engineering and construction supervision with the State and Federal government, working throughout New Hampshire on Civilian Conservation Corps projects. On September 14, 1936, he married F. Adrienne Shastany of Laconia. In 1937, he joined his father’s contracting firm of W. M. Bisson & Son as Engineer-Estimator and Contractor’s Assistant. He became manager of the construction division of this firm in 1945 and sole owner upon his father’s retirement in 1952.
From 1941 to 1945, Col. Bisson was in active military service with the Corps of Engineers and Army Air Force Engineers, serving in South Africa, the Middle East, China and throughout the eastern United States. In 1953, he graduated from a Special Associate Course, Army Command and Staff College in Leavenworth, Kansas. Mr. Bisson was a co-author of the book “Engineering Opportunities” (D. Appleton Century) and wrote and published numerous articles and reports about construction projects, including one on the Avery Dam that appeared in “New England Construction” magazine. Mr. Bisson was a member of the Laconia Rotary Club, a director of the Laconia Chamber of Commerce, the Associated General Contractors of New Hampshire and Vermont and the Laconia Industrial Development Corp. He was a trustee of the Laconia Hospital, a Third Degree Member of the Knights of Columbus, and a member of the New Hampshire Society of Engineers, the Society of American Military Engineers and the Winnipesaukee Power Squadron. He and his wife flew with the Belknap Aero Club in the mid 1930’s.
Mr. Bisson was a Senior Vice President of the New Hampshire Department, Reserve Officers Association of the United States. In 1953, he became a corporator of the Laconia Savings Bank and a trustee in 1954. Mr. Bisson was a communicant of St. Joseph Church Laconia.
Survivors include three sons, William J. Bisson of Portland, Maine, Robert A. Bisson of Alexandria, VA and John F. Bisson of Laconia; a daughter, Elizabeth Kingsley of Saugus, MA; six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Calling hours will be held on Friday, October 28, 2005 from 5:00PM to 8:00PM in the Carriage House of the Wilkinson-Beane Funeral Home, 164 Pleasant Street, Laconia, NH.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Joseph Church, 30 Church St., Laconia, NH on Saturday, October 29, 2005 at 10:00AM by Rev. Gary J. Kosmowski, Pastor of the Church. Burial will follow in the family lot in St. Lambert Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Holy Trinity Endowment Trust, c/o Paul Normandin, PO Box 575, Laconia, NH 03247-0575 or to Neighbors in Need c/o The DeCamp Financial Center, 14 Country Club Road, Gilford, NH 03249.
Wilkinson-Beane Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 164 Pleasant Street, Laconia, NH is in charge of the arrangements.
|
