Loretta A. Henshaw

Our beloved, Loretta Ann (Shorthill) Henshaw, 81, of Kingston, NH, passed away peacefully on October 27, 2024, at the Rockingham County Nursing Home after many long and courageous years enduring Multiple Sclerosis and Lewy Body Dementia.
Loretta, the first girl in nearly 60 years of her lineage to survive, was born on February 20, 1943, to Bliss (Morley) and Thomas Allan Shorthill in the town of Kimberly, Nevada. She playfully referred to it as being "born in space" since the entire town was eventually consumed by a mine.
She was a woman of great spirit, who loved her family, friends, and her God, Jehovah.
Pre-deceased by her parents, and daughter, Shauna Baxter, Loretta is survived by her loving husband, George Henshaw, her sibling, Howard Allan Shorthill, half brothers Stanley and Danny Johnson, half sister Debbie Bethers, three children, Teri (Baxter) Cheney, Geri (Baxter) Bacon, and John David Baxter II, her stepson, William Henshaw, a plethora of grandchildren, great grandchildren, great-great grandchildren, as well as many extended cousins, nieces, and nephews.
Wherever she went, she enriched the lives of others with her joy and lightness. Loretta loved to sing along to oldies music, especially "Angel Baby" or "the Lollipop Song", and joke and laugh with loved ones. She was known for her broad smile, great dimples and perfect hair, and she loved cats, especially her 3 Cornish Rexes, because "they looked like "little space aliens!"
Loretta was a collector of certain things: purses, jewelry, clothing that sparkled, music and mixtapes, as well as an assortment of different translations of the Bible, which she would reference in her studies of the Scriptures.
Baptized as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in 1970, it was in this faith that Loretta found great comfort and dedicated herself to performing acts of service for the love of her God, Jehovah. She was also a talented seamstress, making dresses for herself and her three girls for a convention of Jehovah's Witnesses at Dodger Stadium.
After living much of her adult life in Southern California, Loretta and her husband, George, traveled many times across the country to New Hampshire and Maine, and then back, enjoying the sights and scenes along the way. In 2004, George and Loretta moved back to Kittery, ME, from California, and then in 2007 finally settled in NH where she lived the remainder of her life.
In 2002, Loretta was dealt a setback when she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). She recovered from it to the point where she was able to live a mostly normal life except for some difficulty walking. But the years caught up to her and the MS progressed to Dementia which she lived with until her passing.
Loretta's spirit was never dampened, and she always remained trusting and forgiving toward others. Her husband recalls how she let someone who needed a place to stay into her home after they had just married and moved out of town. The person shortly thereafter made off with the television and the stereo. In the end, Loretta just shrugged her shoulders and said: "she must have needed it more than we did."
She may have departed from our sight, but the memory of Loretta will never be forgotten by the many who loved her.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, November 9, 2024, at 3:30 PM EST, at the Brentwood Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses, 21 NH-27, Brentwood, NH 03833.
If you'd like to donate in Loretta's name, please consider either the Rockingham County Nursing Home or the New Hampshire Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NHSPCA).