LACONIA ---- Denise ‘Denny’ Wood Stringfellow, 84, of 21 Ledgeview Drive, passed away at her home on Saturday, November 30, 2024.
Denny was born on January 27, 1940, in Waterbury, Connecticut, the daughter of Lorton Arthur Wood, a salesman for the Seth Thomas Clock Company and later a farmer and milkman, and Elizabeth (Atwood) Wood, a homemaker and later realtor and Connecticut state representative.
Denny grew up in Litchfield and Northfield, Connecticut and had many fond memories of farm life and a more agrarian era in New England. She graduated from the Northfield School for Girls in Northfield, Massachusetts in 1957. She then attended the University of Connecticut, training to become a nurse. While in training at Yale-New Haven hospital, she met Dr. Stewart Stringfellow, a medical resident there. They married in 1961, and were married for nearly 60 years until Stew's death in 2020. Upon Stew's opening of his medical practice, they settled in nearby Guilford, Connecticut. They had three children, James (Jim) Stewart Stringfellow, Laurie Adams Stringfellow and William (Bill) Mills Stringfellow.
Having enjoyed many summer and skiing vacations in New Hampshire, Denny and Stew and family moved to Gilford, New Hampshire in 1973, later living in Meredith, Center Harbor and Laconia. With Denny's encouragement and support, the family enjoyed many sports and other outdoor activities in the Lakes Region.
Denny returned to school to complete her B.S. degree at New England College, majoring in Psychology and Sociology. In addition to social work, she was involved in hospice care, supervised volunteers at Lakes Region General Hospital, and worked as a legal assistant.
Denny had many interests and hobbies over the years. She especially enjoyed quilting, through which she met an enduring group of friends. She partnered with one friend to operate a small business, Featherbed Quilts. Gardening, flower arranging, decorating and antiquing were among her other avid interests. She supported and/or volunteered at many local charities, including Altrusa (arranging tuition funding for needy students), Canterbury Shaker Village, the New Hampshire Music Festival and the New Hampshire Humane Society.
Denny also enjoyed travel, particularly to Bermuda, Maine, Arizona, Wyoming and Ireland, and one especially memorable safari in Kenya and Tanzania.
Denny was a lifelong dog lover, with a special affinity for the English Setters she had over the course of her life.
Denny is survived by her sons Jim and Bill Stringfellow, daughter Laurie, granddaughter Sappho Louise Stringfellow and sister Letitia Wood Pulford and her husband Jeffrey. In addition to her parents, Denise was predeceased by her husband Stew, daughter-in-law Marla Dalley Stringfellow and her brothers Irving Lorton Wood and Robert Arthur Wood.
A Graveside Service will be held in the spring at Oakland Cemetery in Meredith, New Hampshire.
Donations in Denny's memory may be made to the NH Humane Society, PO Box 572, Laconia, NH 03247.
Wilkinson-Beane-Simoneau-Paquette Funeral Home & Cremation Services/603Cremations.com, 164 Pleasant St., Laconia, NH, 03246, is assisting the family with arrangements. For more information and to view an online memorial, please visit wilkinsonbeane.com.