Donald James Tardiff, 65, of Pembroke, passed away at home on September 23, 2015 surrounded by family. After being diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Don inspired others through the strength and positive attitude with which he lived for the past two years.
He was born in Springfield, MA on September 28, 1949 to the late Alfred and Eleanor (Lund) Tardiff. His family moved to Manchester in 1954, returning to his mother’s family home on Blodgett Street.
Upon graduating from Manchester High School Central in 1967, Don attended UNH before enlisting in the U.S. Army in 1970 to serve his country in Vietnam. After his honorable discharge, he enjoyed working as a manufacturing engineer for General Electric in Hooksett for 39 years, retiring in 2010. He made lifelong friends at GE and had a quick wit and dry sense of humor that will be dearly missed.
Don was an avid fisherman and hunter. He looked forward to long walks in the woods with his buddies during hunting season. He was a skilled woodworker and mechanic and meticulously maintained his home for 38 years in Sherwood Meadows.
He and his wife enjoyed following UNH hockey, the Red Sox, traveling to ballparks across the country, watching his granddaughter’s soccer games and vacationing with family in the Caribbean. Above all else, he will be remembered as a loving and devoted husband, father, “Pop”, brother-in-law, cousin and friend who cherished time spent with family and his beloved German Shepherds.
Don leaves behind his wife of 41 years, Debbye (Allison) Tardiff of Pembroke; their two children, Allyson Tardiff Hicks and her husband, Matthew, of Concord and Andrew James Tardiff of Manchester; his precious granddaughters, Phoebe Luna Hicks and Eve Patricia Hicks; his brother-in-law, Charles Allison and his wife, Joyce, of Coltsneck, NJ; and cousins, including Louise Cloutier and her husband, Rick, and Connie Couturier and her husband, Bob.
He was predeceased by his brother, Bernard Alfred Tardiff in 1972.
A graveside committal service with military honors was held on Monday, September 28, 2015 at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery, 110 Daniel Webster Highway, Boscawen.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the ALS Association Northern New England Chapter, 10 Ferry St., Suite 309, Concord, NH 03301, or to Juvenile Diabetes Association, JDRF, 26 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10004 (www.jdrf.org)