Debbie Ross

Dear Family and Friends,

The day has come for me to say goodbye. As with any good trip I would plan, I have prepared a message for all those interested and connected to me. As you may have guessed, this isn't your typical obituary, but then, I have always been a bit independent and had to do things in the way I thought best. With that being said, you get a letter, and my hope is that you will celebrate who I was.

As you may already know (and for you who don't, spoiler alert), on February 25, 2025, at 65 years of age, I passed away peacefully at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston with my family by my side. I enjoyed an absolutely wonderful life. My first home was in Wentworth, NH, where I was the daughter of my loving father, Robert Blodgett, and my mother, Theresa. I loved my small town of Wentworth and was proud and happy to always consider this wonderful place one of my homes.

Later, I called Keene, NH home as I spent 4 years at Keene State College where I received my bachelor's degree in Education. I also made some wonderful friends there who have always held a special place in my heart. My time at Keene enabled me to become a certified Elementary/Special Education teacher in New Hampshire. Later, I fulfilled a personal goal of obtaining my master's degree in education from Plymouth State University.

I consider myself fortunate, as I selected a career that I spent 34 years in and loved. Being a classroom teacher was very special to me, and I was proud and happy to have been able to work with so many wonderful children and adults during my life. Thank you to each and every one of you for touching my life in the way you did. You enriched my life and made me a better person. I loved being a teacher and hope that I made a difference.

I developed an early desire for travel and exploration. This started with a high school trip to France, and from then on, I always had a list of places I wanted to see. Although I didn't get to all of them, I did get to some and enjoyed every new place. Through it all, it really became clear that it isn't always the place but the people with whom you share your time that matters. I got to see so many places with the best travel partner ever. Ray and I saw so many wonderful places and things as we made our way around the US and beyond. I was also privileged to journey to places with other family and friends. For those of you who shared vacations and explorations with me, thank you! It was so much fun and I was always looking forward to the next one.

My life with Ray began in high school, and the year I graduated college, we were married. My high school sweetheart became my lifelong love and the person I shared the rest of my days with. My greatest joy during married life was becoming a mother to our children, Kyle and Lindsay. We lived in Manchester, Goffstown, and eventually moved to Bedford, NH, where career and home shared the same locale.

Our lives as a family were precious to me, and my best days were those in which we were all together. Ray, Kyle, and Lindsay, I hope you know and always remember that my life was worth living and made meaningful because of you. I want you to smile, laugh, and enjoy life as I would. Dance in your kitchens, share silly jokes, go on adventures, explore, dream big, go for it, laugh lots, spend time with family, and enjoy each day. When you do those things, I too will be smiling and feel happy for you! You are my loves and always will be!

There aren't words to express how much my family and friends have always meant to me. This continued throughout my life and into retirement, where I expanded my circle of friends as a snowbird in Okeechobee, Florida. I feel truly blessed to have been able to continue to meet wonderful people who enhanced my days.

Other than Ray, Kyle, and Lindsay, I was also blessed with a larger, more extended family. You know who you are, and I hope you know how special you were to me. I learned early the importance of family and carried that with me. I love you, and I often spent time thinking of you, remembering you, and feeling thankful to have you in my life. Goodbye to my siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and those whom I was connected to through marriage. Thank you for enriching my life.

Included in my family is the love I had for our family pets. Trooper was our first and only family dog. I loved him dearly. Trooper, I will see you over the Rainbow Bridge. My next pet love, Lindsay's dog Oliver, crept right into my heart and quickly secured his spot there. I consider these two dogs special family members and am thankful to have shared time with them. They had a way of making me feel special and loved.

Now, the purpose of this letter, I get to my final farewell. My friends and family, thank you for helping me to have a wonderful life. I know that as you read this and perhaps for the next few days, some sadness may enter your heart. I have been there and can appreciate that, but don't dwell on the sadness for too long. Take the time you need, but then move forward. To take words from another, "You can grieve for the rest of your life, or you can live your life with some grief ... I want you to live your life!"

To my most precious ones, Ray, Kyle, and Lindsay ... take care of each other. Live each day, have fun, laugh lots, hang out with each other, enjoy each other's company, listen to each other, and always have each other's backs. I love you more than words can ever express. I am going to do my best to be looking out for you every day. Spend your days loving life and being happy. Live life to the fullest and find your own joys. Love you forever and always!

To the rest of my family and friends, thank you for helping me to have a great life. Live long, laugh lots, and love to the fullest!

Debbie

P.S. Services are as follows. Hope you can share some good memories and stories as you get together with each other. Hugs to you all!`

A Celebration of Life to honor and remember Debbie will be held on June 7, 2025 at Perkins Cabins (16 Perkins Lane Holderness, NH 03245) at 11:00 AM. Burial to follow at Foster Cemetery (1910 NH-25 Wentworth, NH 03282) around 3:00 PM.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Debbie's memory to support the community and causes close to her heart. Contributions may be made to the Wentworth Elementary School 1247 Mt. Moosilauke Highway, Wentworth, NH 03282 (please write "Student Activity Fund" in the memo line) or to the Wentworth Congregational Church PO Box 3, Wentworth, NH 03282.