John R. Hardie

1926 - 2017

John R. Hardie, banker, community leader, conservationist and outdoorsman, died peacefully Sunday, March 5, 2017, at Havenwood in Concord. Born on Aug. 22, 1926, in Brooklyn, N.Y. to Allan R. Hardie and Isabel (Burchell) Hardie, John attended The Choate School and Yale, from which he graduated in 1947. His experience at summer camp in the Adirondacks was the beginning of his lifelong love of the outdoors, which inspired his move to New Hampshire following his college graduation.

He began a career in banking, first at Franklin Savings Bank for a three-year stint, followed by 36 years at New Hampshire Savings Bank, where he rose to Chairman of the Board and CEO, retiring in 1988. In 1949 John married Drusilla Penn, who predeceased him in 1998. John and Dru had one son, born in 1951, John R. Hardie Jr., who passed away in 1989.

In 2002 John met Michelle Jones, who was his devoted partner for the remainder of his life. John was active in community affairs. Among his many leadership roles, he was chairman of the board of trustees of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, trustee of the Trust for NH Lands, president of the NH Business Development Corp., treasurer of the Concord Rotary Club, campaign chair of the United Way of Greater Concord, director of the NH Housing Finance Authority, director of the Concord Area Regional Development Corp., and president of Family Financial Counseling Services. He also served as a corporate director of Yankee Publishing, Inc.

In the banking industry, he was a director of the National Association of Mutual Savings Banks, chairman of the NH Association of Savings Banks, director and member of the executive committee of the National Council of Savings Institutions, member of the New England Advisory Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and a director of Rockingham County Trust Company.

After retirement he was a founding member of the Wise Men, an informal luncheon group that meets monthly to analyze, discuss and solve the world's problems. John had an infectious love of the outdoors. With like-minded friends he organized and participated in numerous skiing, hiking, sailing and canoeing adventures. One particularly memorable highlight was a hiking trip to Mt. Rainier with several close Concord friends. He introduced his son, Johnny, and young family friends to the pleasures of skiing Cannon and Sunapee Mountains and Tuckerman Ravine, and to the pleasures of backpacking to the AMC huts. He also traveled to the Rockies and Europe to ski.

In his later years John and Michelle enjoyed trips to Florida with friends and numerous excursions to the New England coast and mountains. John was an accomplished tennis player. He installed a clay court at his Hopkinton home that was the site of weekend mixed doubles play open to players of all ages. John was instrumental in teaching the game of tennis to numerous Hopkinton children.

John was a man of intelligence and integrity. He was a perceptive judge of people and was blessed with a quick, subtle sense of humor. He was "old school" in his modesty and unpretentiousness. In his later years he closely followed world events and politics, with a particular interest in environmental issues including the threat of global climate change.

John is survived by his partner, Michelle Jones of Henniker; nieces, Wendy Rose of Keene, Robin Noll of Talent, Ore. and June Huynh, of West Hartford, Conn.; nephew, Peter Campbell, of Vista, Calif.; several grand-nieces and nephews; and Michelle's children and grandchildren, whom he viewed as family. He was predeceased by his brother, Allan Hardie and sister, Josephine Campbell.

A memorial service and reception will be held on Saturday, May 20 at 11 a.m., at The Society for the Protection of NH Forests, 54 Portsmouth St., Concord.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the John R. Hardie Conservation Fund, SPNHF, 54 Portsmouth St., Concord, NH 03301.