Obituary of Leonard-James-Thomas Hutchins

Leonard James Thomas Hutchins, loving husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle, and faithful friend, ended his courageous struggle with Parkinson's disease Tuesday, February 26, 2013 in the compassionate care of the staff at Concord Hospice House, with his loving wife Billy Ann at his side.Leonard was born August 23, 1930, in Montville, Conn. to Leonard J. Sr. and Hazel McDowell Hutchins. He grew up on a dairy farm in Old Mystic, Conn., and from a young age did farming chores and helped his father with early morning milk deliveries. On his return home in the mornings he walked across the street to attend classes at a one room schoolhouse. He was an excellent baseball player and played in several leagues in the Groton/New London area as a teenager and young adult. He was Treasurer of his Senior Class and graduated from Fitch Senior High School in Groton, Conn. in 1948.He joined the Navy after high school but was called home to help on the family farm; He worked as a draftsman at General Dynamics, Electric Boat Division, from 1952 to 1954. He enlisted in the Army in April 1954.He married Lois Ann Chapman of Gales Ferry, Conn., in July 1954. After his Army service he returned to Electric Boat to the Electrical Design Division. He was part of a group from EB that was sent to Barrow-in-Furness, England in 1966-1967 to guide the British in converting their submarines from electric to nuclear power. When he retired from EB in 1987 he was Chief of Electrical Design, in charge of a large division and many employees. He was a respected and fair manager who enjoyed mentoring those who worked with him. He took great pride in building state-of-the-art submarines.Len and Lois lived in Ledyard, Conn., and then in Scotland, Conn., where they lovingly restored a 270-year-old Cape Cod home. Their children attended Parish Hill Junior/Senior High School, and Len served on the Parish Hill School Board for many years. He also coached youth sports, and built several baseball fields for his community's youth teams.After Lois in died in 1975, Len moved to Mystic, Conn. In 1981 he married Billy Ann Gray Maynard of Groton, Conn. He single-handedly built a post and beam vacation home in Washington, and in the mid 1990s Billy and Len moved fulltime to Washington where they enjoyed gardening, paddle-boating, and many visits from grandchildren. In 2006 they moved to Concord.Len loved to work with his hands. He built furniture for his family, from cradles and dollhouses for great-grandchildren to hutches and corner cupboards for daughters. He could fix just about anything, and always seemed to have a project going. He loved gardening, UConn basketball, traveling. ice cream, board games, licorice and an intense game of bridge. He had a great sense of humor, was dependable and kind, and will be greatly missed.He was predeceased by his first wife Lois Ann Chapman Hutchins; two sons, Tod G. Hutchins and Chris L. Hutchins; two sisters, K. Elinor Coleman and Anastasia Chagnon. He is survived by his wife Billy Ann Hutchins; four daughters, Kim H. Millar (James), Princeton, N.J., Tina M. Rizzo (Mark), Westerly, R.I., Judy A. Gratzinger (Robert), Pittsburgh, and Donna J. Garcia (David), San Diego; two sons, Mark D. Hutchins (Carolyn), Rockledge, Fla., and John S. Maynard (Toni), Waterford, Conn.; 16 grandchildren: Matthew, Sarah, Anne, and Adam Millar, Andrew, Kevin, and Elizabeth Hutchins, Craig and Derek Shumate, Cadin and Abigail Maynard, Cary Maynard, David Murray, Eric Bowker, Ashlee Gratzinger, and Tia Burgess; and five great-grandchildren: Lariah Maynard, Annabelle and Autumn Taylor, and Vivian and James Murray. He is also survived by his sisters Harriet L. Fox of Mukilteo, Wash., Beverly Gunn of Tucson, Ariz., Hazel M. Urick of Strongsville, Ohio, Dolores Wilkinson of Punta Gorda, Fla., and Barbara Finegan of Punta Gorda, Fla., and many nieces, nephews, neighbors and dear friends.Memorial Services will be held Friday, March 8, at 11 a.m., at South Church, 27 Pleasant St, Concord.Burial will be in Connecticut at the convenience of the family. Memorial contributions may be made to Concord Regional VNA Hospice House, 30 Pillsbury Street, Concord, NH 03301; Senior High Youth Group, South Congregational Church, UCC, 27 Pleasant Street, Concord, NH 03301; or Concord Community Music School, 23 Wall Street, Concord, NH, 03301.The Bennett Funeral Home of Concord is in charge of the arrangements. Messages of condolences may be offered at www.bennettfuneral.com