Stanwood Curtis Fish Sr. Obituary (1938 - 2018)

Topsham, Maine-Stanwood Curtis Fish Sr. age 80 of The Highlands died on Saturday, September 8th due to complications of Parkinson’s Disease. Stan was born in Hartford, CT. on June 28, 1938, the son of Helen Curtis Fish and Stanwood Shumway Fish. Stan attended and was a 1952 graduate of Southwest Elementary School in Hartford. While in Hartford, he was a member of Little League, the Cub and Boy Scouts. Stan loved and participated in many outdoor activities and sports including boxing. While in Hartford, Stan held a paper route delivering for "The Hartford Times” through which he was nominated for a scholarship to Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. Stan prepared for college at Phillips Exeter Academy, graduating in1956. Stan then went to study at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine graduating in 1960 where he was President of Psi Upsilon Fraternity. Stan completed his Master’s degree in History from the University of New Hampshire in 1968. Financial responsibilities precluded his acceptance of a teaching assistantship for doctoral studies in history offered by the University of Virginia. He also completed thirty hours of graduate course work in education and educational counseling at the University of New Hampshire. For three years in the early 60’s, Stan was an instructor at Kents Hill School, Kents Hill, Maine. He was responsible for teaching Political Science and United States History while also serving as dormitory head and assistant coach in football, skiing and baseball. In the mid-sixties, Stan served as Counselor for Exeter and, Newfields Title 1 Project in Exeter, New Hampshire. He introduced counseling services to elementary schools in Exeter and Newfields, New Hampshire. Stan was invited to speak about his work before the June 1967 meeting of the New Hampshire School Principals’ Association as well as before the October 1967 meeting of the New England Personnel and Guidance Association. In the late 60’s, Stan became Head Counselor for the Exeter Area Junior High School in Exeter, New Hampshire. He administered guidance and counseling services to seven hundred students. In 1968-1970, Stan became Assistant Director of Admissions at the University of New Hampshire representing the University of New Hampshire high schools in the Merrimack Valley and the Seacoast Region. In 1978 and 1979, Stan served as an appointed member of the National Merit Scholarship Selection Committee. From 1970-1980, Stan was Associated Director of Admissions for the University of New Hampshire. He supervised the recruiting program and the application review process for 15,000 freshmen, transfer and readmission applicants. He represented the University to seventy-five secondary schools and two-year colleges throughout the country. He also organized the University of New Hampshire-California Student Exchange Program during 1973-1974. In the early 80’s, Stan was Acting Director of Admissions. He reorganized the Admissions Office through the appointment of additional staff members. This included the conversion of the Admissions computer system to on-line status with the development of an expanded data base. He expanded the out-of-state recruiting program from eighty schools to two hundred secondary schools. From 1981-1987, Stan was Director of Admissions for the University of New Hampshire. He coordinated the revision of admissions publications and expanded out-of-state school visitations from two hundred to five hundred schools, among other things and added the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of California at Santa Cruz to the UNH Exchange Program. In 1984 and 1985, Stan served as elected Chairman of the New England Regional Assembly of the College Entrance Examination Board. From 1987-1991, Stan was Dean of Admissions at the University of New Hampshire. He assumed responsibility for development of new student enrollment objectives and expanded enrollment planning and programming to include the deans of the University’s six different schools and colleges. From 1986-1990, Stan served as the elected Trustee for the colleges and universities of New England Region to the College Entrance Examination Board, N.Y, N.Y. From 1991-1994, Stan was Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at the University of New Hampshire. Stan strengthened the financial aid program through enhancements to staffing, support budgets, tuition grants and scholarship funding. Stan loved the University of New Hampshire and was gratified by the work that he did there. Stan retired from the University on July 1, 1994 and he and his wife, Virginia, moved to Brunswick, Maine to be close to his elderly parents. In his retirement, Stan found a new creative outlet when he became a furniture finisher for Chilton’s Furniture Store in Freeport, Maine where he was employed for another seven and a half years. This was a new and very gratifying creative adventure for Stan through which he acquired "a following" who asked for him for several years after fully retiring in March of 2003. Stan loved being outdoors and he loved sharing outdoor activities with his children, other family members and friends. Stan is survived by his wife of 34 years, Virginia McCullough Fish; his son, Stanwood Curtis Fish Jr., "Curt”; his daughter, Sandra Curtis Fish; Stan’s sister, Marilyn Fish Dunham and her husband, Atwood; Stan’s niece, Margaret Dunham Dempsey and her husband, Greg; Stan’s nephew, Jonathan Dunham and his wife Rebecca; great nieces, great nephews, cousins and his first wife, Sharon Gear Drake and her husband Ted. A visiting hour will be held Thursday, September 20th from 10-11 AM at Stetson’s Funeral Home, 12 Federal Street in Brunswick, Maine with a funeral service to follow at 11 AM. Interment will follow in Grove Cemetery in Freeport, Maine. A Celebration of Stan’s Life will be held Friday, October 26th at 12 noon at the Harraseeket Inn, 162 Main St. Freeport, Maine (One block north of LL Bean on the opposite side of the street.) In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust, 56 Maine Street, Brunswick, Maine 04011. Memorial condolences may be expressed at stetsonsfuneralhome.com