Melvin J. Milender

Bristol, NH - Mel was born on September 28, 1929 in Brookline, Massachusetts to Jacob and Rowena (Kirle) Milender. He grew up in Chelsea, MA and in 1940, the family moved to Newton, MA. He played basketball and baseball at Newton High and Huntington Prep, and Mel was the starting forward on the Huntington Prep basketball team that went to the New England Prep School finals in 1948.

Mel spent two years at Centre College (Kentucky) on a scholarship before transferring to University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He played varsity baseball and basketball at both schools and graduated with the UMass class of 1951. He used to joke that in the one week after graduation, he got calls to try out as a pitcher for the Red Sox, to be a phys. ed teacher at Northampton (MA) High School, and by Uncle Sam for active duty in the army. Mel went on to serve three years in the Army Security Agency stationed in Virginia and Alaska during the Korean War.

He met Cynthia Anne Westcott ("Anne") while they were both students at UMass, and they were married in 1953. After his discharge from the Army, Mel started his own business, Crystal Auto Parts in Wakefield, MA. Mel and Anne moved to West Peabody, MA where they lived and raised their family from 1956 until 2005. While in West Peabody, Mel remained very active in the local sporting scene starring in a men's softball league, coaching 13-15 year old boys in Babe Ruth Baseball for many years and starting the 16-18 year old Senior Babe Ruth program for West Peabody.

Mel sold his business in 1987, and he and Anne retired to Newfound Lake in Bristol, NH. Over the years, he and Anne enjoyed travelling through the Caribbean, China, England, and Scandinavia. But they always looked forward to returning to their home in Camelot Acres on Newfound Lake, where they had many good friends and pleasant times on the beach and the lake.

Mel leaves his wife of 68 years, Anne, of Bristol, NH; two sons, Jeffrey and his wife Stephanie (Schofield) of Concord, NH and Kenneth and his wife Casey (Cronin), of Warner; and two beloved grandsons, Jacob Milender of Brooklyn, NY and Samuel Milender of Warner, NH. Mel was predeceased by his brother Robert Milender and his sister Carole LaVine Goldman. He is survived by many nieces, nephews, and friends that remember him very fondly.

A private graveside service will be held at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery in Boscawen, NH. In lieu of flowers a donation may be offered to the Newfound Lake Region Association, 10 North Main Street, Bristol, NH 03222, or to the Chaplain Emergency Relief Fund, PO Box 185, Campton, NH 03223.