LACONIA ---- Wayne Edward Eshelman, 75, of Laconia, NH, beloved husband, father, brother and friend, passed away on Sunday, September 15, 2024, at the Maine Medical Center in Portland, ME, due to a sudden cardiac arrest that occurred during his second battle with cancer.
On May 17, 1949 in Concord, NH, Wayne became the second of six children who would be born to Walter and Ella (Sandquist) Eshelman. The Eshelman family lived in Dover and Charlestown, NH before settling down in Laconia. Wayne’s adventurous childhood was marked by repeated concussions from playing with his gang of unsupervised adolescent boys and the elaborate pranks that they played on school teachers. He graduated from Laconia High School in 1967.
Although he was raised in a conservative home structured around Christian religious devotion, Wayne developed into a free spirit who defined himself as “spiritual but not religious.” Despite having SAT scores that neither of his kids would be able to beat and making Dean’s List at UNH while working full time, his affinity for hands-on learning and desire for a life unencumbered by paperwork that is divorced from reality, led to learning through working rather than through traditional education. His professional experience was wide ranging including sales, sales management and training, quality control engineering, management of various departments in manufacturing plants, and contracted historical preservation work. After decades of work, Wayne joyfully resumed course work at UNH to study Industrial Statistics and Design of Experiments.
Wayne enjoyed the sense of community that one could find in the workplace, and he truly cared for the people who worked alongside him at Melnick’s Shoe Store, Prudential Insurance, Vernitron (later Beau Interconnect and then Molex), Lytron, and Enfield Shaker Village. He was a hard worker, a problem solver and was always ready to lend a hand. He was an imperfect human being, but he always saw the best in others, avoided judgment and was always the first to help out others without needing to be asked.
Wayne married Sally (Slovack) Eshelman, a complementary independent spirit on July 7, 1972 and then again on October 15, 1972; he referred to these two weddings as “one to make it legal and one to make it pretty.” The two spent 52 years building a life together and respecting each other’s independence and fostering the individuality of their two daughters.
The foundational element of his personal philosophy was, “Don’t be a prisoner of the things you cannot change.” Instead of focusing on the things he could not change, he focused on enjoying the gifts that life had given him, such as building and riding the motorcycle trike he made out of a Corvair engine; visiting America’s National Parks with Sally in a challenging, second-hand RV; and preparing and sharing gourmet dinners with friends.
Growing up in New Hampshire, Wayne was passionate about sailing, especially racing on Lake Winnipesaukee, and cultivating an appreciation for the natural beauty of the state in his children. This affection for the natural beauty of New England would extend to a love for the Maine coast and the garden sanctuary he and Sally created at Mousam River Campground. He would show love for his Mousam River Campground family through building countless decks and his love for his country by playing patriotic songs at noon throughout the summer season.
Wayne loved his country, including its religious pluralism. He believed that ethically, religions had more in common than what separated them. As an independent thinker and a pragmatist with a sentimental streak, he was committed to the practical work that advances civic engagement rather than blindly adhering to a specific political affiliation. He served as the Ward 2 Moderator of the voting checklist for several years.
Wayne is survived by his wife of 52 years, Sally, his children Andrea Levin and her husband Alex of Marlborough, NH, and Elizabeth Eshelman and her partner, Sean Keith, of Portland, Oregon. Also surviving him are his siblings Kate Eshelman and her husband Dick Lavallee, Ruth Barlow and her husband David, Kris Eshelman and her husband Phil Fondaw, Erik Eshelman and his wife Becca, and Becki Zingg and her husband Jule, cousins, nieces, nephews, and two Yorkshire terriers who adored him. He was predeceased by his parents, his in-laws, his brother–in-law Michael Slovack, his cousin and close friend, Tommy Hyde, and five Yorkshire terriers who also adored him.
A non-denominational Memorial Service celebrating Wayne’s life will be held on Monday, November 11, 2024 from 12:00pm-1:00pm in the Carriage House at the Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home, 164 Pleasant Street, Laconia, NH.
For those wishing to honor Wayne, the family suggests that you look for commonalities rather than differences with people, pay forward good works, and make a donation to a charity of your choice.
Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services/603Cremations.com,164 Pleasant Street, Laconia NH is assisting the family with the arrangements. For more information and to view an online memorial go to wilkinsonbeane.com.