John Kremer III

John Kremer, III died peacefully in the morning of November 26, 2025 in Scarborough, Maine with his children by his side. He was a kind man and loving father and will be deeply missed.

Born on March 3, 1939, in Montclair, New Jersey to Katherine Shippen Dunn and John Kremer Jr., John studied at Chestnut Hill Academy, St George's School (where he was Head of School) and Princeton University, from which he graduated with an A.B. in 1961. He married his first wife, Joan Fell Lee, during his senior year.

John strongly believed in service to country. After Princeton, he served as a second lieutenant in the US Army initially stationed in El Paso, TX and later in Germany.

Deeply curious and well-read, John probably should have been a college professor. He loved debating with his children across the dinner table, often taking the losing side of a proposition to help them sharpen their own thinking. Instead, he pursued a corporate career with the Insurance Company of North America and Atlantic Richfield, which included overseas postings in Madrid, Spain, and London, England.

John moved to Fryeburg, Maine in 1989 to become the business manager of Fryeburg Academy. Little did he know this would mark the beginning of an amazing second chapter. He met Leslie Russell in 1993, a loving partner and soulmate for 32 years who predeceased him by only a few months. Together they took on the world. They volunteered for the Peace Corps in Lithuania, hiked the Milford Track in New Zealand, cooked professionally, and traveled widely. Their house was filled with warmth, good food, and a ready glass of wine.

True to his nature, John was a perpetual student. He learned how to cane chairs, took violin lessons well into his seventies, volunteered at the Lovell and Conway libraries, and was a devoted supporter of the Portland Orchestra. John was granted an honorary lifetime membership to the Fryeburg Historical Society.

Known to his family as Popster, he leaves them with endless great memories; ambitious road trips across Franco Spain in the beloved red SEAT; an abiding passion for history, music, and literature; and a lifelong habit of completing the New York Times crossword puzzle in ink. They will miss the extraordinary meals that he and Leslie created, usually consumed on their idyllic back porch, paired with just the right wine and conversation.

John is succeeded by his children, Ellen Kremer Christian (Bob Waddell), John Kremer (Erika Lederman) and his grandchildren Theo and Maxwell Christian, Henry and Milo Kremer. He is also succeeded by stepdaughters Jessica Russell (Filippo Battoni), Kristen Russell McDermott (Dave McDermott), Hilary Russell (Rene Treiser), and Allison and Camila Battoni.

A private memorial will be held in the Spring.