Lester W. Bradley

Eric in IL

Well-known Member
Thornton - Lester William Bradley, 66, died peacefully at his home in Thornton Gore on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2014.Born July 11, 1947, in Lincoln to Richard "Dick" and Dorothy (Corkum) Bradley, he was a 1965 graduate of Linwood High School, Lincoln, and received a degree in forestry from the University of New Hampshire in 1969, where he met and married his wife of 45 years, Sharon (Perkins) Bradley.After college, he served two years in the U.S. Marine Corps before returning to New Hampshire where he worked at Loon Mountain and as a lumberjack and sawyer at the Beebe River Sawmill in Campton. He then made the move from part-time to full-time National Guard service at the Plymouth armory, achieving the rank of staff sergeant before moving on to the Plymouth office of the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative, retiring in 2010 because of illness.Lester loved playing and listening to bluegrass and gospel music. A multi-instrumentalist and singer, he performed for many years with the Blake Mountain Band and as a duo with his wife. A well-known square dance caller, he represented New Hampshire at the 1999 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. He was a member of the Pemi Valley Church in Woodstock, the Joseph Newton Smith American Legion Post 83 in Lincoln and a 50-plus year member of the West Thornton Grange 253, Thornton. He loved vintage tractors and collected Farmalls, and founded the annual I Love Old Tractors Show in Woodstock in 2003. A second-generation state representative, Lester was serving his second term in the New Hampshire Legislature at the time of his death.He is survived by his wife, Sharon; his daughter, Lynn and husband Richard Clogston of Warren; his son, Nathan Bradley and companion Annie Deppe of Thornton; a daughter-in-law, Cindy Bradley of Thornton; three brothers; one sister; multiple grandchildren, step-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

.

services: The Rev. John Muehlke Jr. will perform a memorial service at the Pemi Valley Church, Route 3, Woodstock, on Tuesday, Feb. 25, at 2 p.m. followed by a gathering in the downstairs hall.Memorial contributions may be made to the Pemi Valley Church, P.O. Box 74, Woodstock 03293.The Fournier-Hale Funeral Home of North Woodstock will be handling arrangements. For more information, go to www.fournier-hale.com.



Published in Union Leader on Feb. 21, 2014
a146248.jpg
 
Les was a good friend. I especially enjoyed the music of him and of the others that joined in at his tractor shows. I wasn't planning to go this year but I will if others are going. Maybe we could do some kind of a tribute.
 
THORNTON — Two-term state Rep. Lester William Bradley is being remembered by colleagues and friends as a good public servant, a great guy and a celebrated square-dance caller.

Bradley, 66, died at his home in Thornton Gore on Wednesday. A memorial service for Bradley will be conducted Tuesday, Feb. 25, at 2 p.m. by the Rev. John Muehlke Jr. at the Pemi Valley Church on Route 3 in Woodstock.

Born July 11, 1947, in Lincoln, Bradley, a nnalert, was a member of the New Hampshire House of Representative’s Science, Technology and Energy Committee where he worked closely with fellow North Country lawmaker Laurence Rappaport, R-Colebrook.

“He was a good friend of mine,” said an emotional Rappaport on Thursday evening, “and I miss him very much.”

As a lineman for New Hampshire Electric Cooperative, Bradley gained valuable insight into how utilities operate that was useful in the Science, Technology and Energy Committee, said Rappaport, adding that Bradley would “definitely be missed” on the committee and in the House. “There’s already a card going around,” Rappaport said, to extend the House’s condolences to his family.

According to Bradley’s obituary provided by the Fournier-Hale Funeral Home of North Woodstock, Bradley served in the U.S. Marine Corps and National Guard, was a lumberjack and sawyer, and was someone who “loved playing and listening to bluegrass and gospel music.”

Sue Marsden, a longtime Thornton resident, said she could attest to the last description of Bradley whom she knew in several ways, including through the Pemi Valley Bluegrass Festival, which she and her late husband, Russ, and others co-founded in 1993.

“For many years on Saturday nights at the blue grass festival, he (Bradley) would run a square dance and people would enjoy that. He was a great caller, and neighbors and friends would join in with him for the music,” Marsden said.

Marsden and Bradley also knew each other from the West Thornton Grange No. 253, of which Bradley was a 50-year member, as well as just from around town.

“He and his family have lived here for a long, long time, and they’re just nice, nice people,” said Marsden, adding that many residents of Thornton are saddened by Bradley’s death.

Although she didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to him, Marsden had a recent encounter with Bradley.

“We just had a grange meeting a couple of months ago, and I’m glad I got to see him that night,” said Marsden.

Asked to give a favorite memory of Bradley, Marsden said she was unable.

“I wish I could say there was one thing, but there were so many.”

David Borden, D-New Castle, who chairs the Science, Technology and Energy Committee, said the committee had a moment of silence on Thursday for Bradley.
 
Here's a youtube clip of Lester calling a squaredance. The camera starts focusing on the band, at 1:10 on the counter, and zooms in at 1:50. Les is the one with the guitar. There are other youtube videos of him performing, but this one seems to have the best shot of him. The others seem to focus more on the dancers.
Lester Performing
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top