Jean Pitman (Barton) Natoli completed her journey towards the light on Wednesday, June 1, 2005 and found peace after a courageous eight year battle with cancer.
She is survived by her husband of eighteen years, Ronald Natoli, her daughters, Kimberly Jennings of Seattle, Washington and Bethany Hague of Center Barnstead, New Hampshire, as well as her grandchildren, Emily and Steven Jennings, and her step-grandchildren Melissa and Robert Hague Jr.. She is also survived by her sister Barbara Wilkinson of Gilford, her mother, Emily Barton of Derry, and special nieces, Stephanie Anderson, Brittany and Megan Davis and nephew, Ryan Anderson.
Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts on Wednesday, the 24th of June 1942, she was the youngest daughter of Maynard and Emily Barton. Spending her youth and young adult years in Derry, New Hampshire, she graduated from Pinkerton Academy in 1960, and went on to achieve a degree in Economics from the University of New Hampshire in 1964. She was also an active member of the International order of Rainbow for Girls, an interest she passed along to her eldest daughter Kim.
Ron always called her the “Roloflex girl”, as she was never without her camera. Her flair for taking pictures was cherished, as she always was taking the pictures everyone eventually wished they had. She was never without her camera in the travels she and Ron took before her illness. The former Soviet Union, (before the wall fell), Israel, Palestine, Italy, Greece and Turkey were among the many places she visited with her husband and daughter, Beth. Always meeting someone along the way, she and Ron corresponded with many of the people they met on their journeys long after their trips were through. They also loved the Le Chateau Montebello in Canada and had a special room they always enjoyed. New Hampshire was also a special place for Jean, as she was very interested in genealogy and enjoyed tracing her New Hampshire ancestry by visiting places important to her and her family’s past. She also loved the ocean and enjoyed walking the beach and talking with Ron.
Their love of nature was evident in the beautiful home they were restoring in Candia, New Hampshire. Gardens, fruit trees, grapes and beehives made for busy and enjoyable times for both of them. She loved to pick the wild strawberries that grew, and was always identifying wildflowers and the many birds that visited their farm. She became a trustee of the Fitts Museum of Candia, and a member of the Candia Historical Society, as well as a family member of the Merrimack Valley Beekeepers Association, and Jackson Historical Society.
A celebration of her life will be held for family and friends at a later date. As being a member of the First Parish Congregational Church of East Derry was so important to her, her family asks that in lieu of flowers, contributions in her name be made to the church, at 47 East Derry Road, P.O. Box 114, East Derry, NH 03041, or donations can be made to the VNA of Manchester, 1850 Elm St., Manchester, NH 03104.