Sanbornville, NH

Doris Violet Hickey of Sanbornville, New Hampshire, passed away peacefully at home on February 8, 2020 at age 101. She was born in Lynn, Massachusetts on May 26, 1918 to Ralph and Helen (Borjeson) Smith. She grew up in Hyde Park, Massachusetts and graduated from Hyde Park High School and Boston Clerical School. She took a bookkeeping job at Allis Chalmers, where her father worked. She married James W. Hickey on September 17, 1938. They lived in Readville and Dedham, Massachusetts. She and her husband grew vegetables in their organic gardens, planted flowers, and kept bees, chickens and rabbits. The family moved to a farm in Sanbornville in 1959.

Doris was a devoted homemaker who baked bread, canned homegrown fruits and vegetables, and cooked daily meals for her family. She loved caring for her special houseplants, tropical fish, and parakeets. She was proud of working at Frankson's Furniture in West Ossipee, M.B. Claff and Sons in Rochester, and Colby Footwear in Gonic, New Hampshire. She bravely applied for her first driver's license and started driving in her 50s. She enjoyed travelling with her family to the White Mountains of New Hampshire and to the ocean. Later in life, she went on adventures to California, Florida, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Japan. Doris and her family attended St. Anthony's Catholic Church, where her strong soprano voice was a fixture in the choir. On her 101st birthday, Doris received the Boston Post Cane as the oldest resident of Wakefield. She amazed everyone with her determination, independence and longevity. She was proud of her long life and her large family.

Doris was predeceased by infant daughter Martha Jane, husband James Hickey, daughter Maureen Hickey Welch, and sister Marjorie Happnie. She is survived by her sisters, Phyllis Foster, Shirley Richards, and Sylvia Darling, daughter Kathleen Hickey Lennon, son Daniel Hickey, daughter Eileen Norrington and her husband Giles, son Kevin Hickey and his wife Catherine Schillinger, daughter Rita Hickey and her husband Patrick Logan, son Michael Hickey and his wife Colleen, 15 grandchildren and many great and great-great-grandchildren.
Many thanks to the people of Central NH VNA and Hospice, who helped Doris pass with comfort and dignity, and to her devoted caregiver, Christine Trofatter.

Donations may be made in Doris Hickey's name to Central NH VNA and Hospice (centralvna.org).

A funeral service and reception will be held on Saturday February 15, 2020 at 11 a.m. at St. Anthony's Catholic Church, 251 Meadow Street, in Sanbornville, NH. A burial will be held in the spring.