Robert M. Ewing
PORTLAND - Robert M. Ewing, 85, of Portland died peacefully at his home Friday, June 10, 2005, surrounded by his loving family. He was born Aug. 24, 1919, in Rye, N.Y., the youngest son of Charles and Louise Parsons Ewing. He attended Milton Academy and graduated from Harvard University in 1942.
Bob served as a mechanic in the Army 130th
Armored Maintenance Battalion in the European theater during World War
II. He earned a masters in city planning from the Harvard Graduate
School of Design. In 1953, he married Suzanne duMontier Bernard of New
Orleans. Bob worked as a city planner in Boston, then in 1956 accepted
a job as head of the Greater Portland Regional Planning Commission. He
also served as chairman of the Cape Elizabeth planning board. He later
consulted for the Androscoggin Valley Regional Planning Commission,
retiring in 1977 to devote his energies to his family and to peace and
social justice issues. He served on the board of Catholic Charities for
several years. Bob loved farming, music, history, and woodworking.
Although impaired by blindness and memory loss in his final years,
humor, generosity, and compassion for others remained his trademarks to
the end.
Surviving are his wife of almost 52 years; children,
Joseph and wife, Kim Roberts, of Seattle, Wash., Charles of Westbrook,
Martha and husband, Timothy Nix, of Middletown, Va., Abigail and
husband, Eric Zelz, of Bangor, Robert "Toby" of Ames, Iowa, Nancy and
husband, Scott Haskell, of Bangor, Suzanne and husband, Alexander
Nacar, of Cranston, R.I., and Sarah and husband, Stephen Gorry, of
Waldoboro. Also surviving are grandchildren, Elizabeth and Phoebe
Ewing, Abigail and Caroline Ewing, Sarah, Rachel, and Rebekah Nix,
Charlotte Zelz, David and Jonas Ewing, and Benjamin and Sylvia Nacar.
Visiting
hours will be held from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, June 14, at Sacred Heart
Church at the corner of Mellen and Sherman Streets in Portland. A
Funeral Mass will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, June 15, also at Sacred
Heart Church.