Obituary: Anita Nichols
June 4, 1927 - August 1, 2022
Anita Nichols. Courtesy photo
Anita Nichols, 95, formerly of Tunbridge, Waterbury Center, and more recently of Northfield, Vermont, passed away with her family by her side on Monday, August 1, 2022 at Mayo Continuing Care in Northfield.
Born on June 4, 1927, in Pismo Beach, California, Anita was the older of two daughters of the late Howard and Evelyn (Boardman) Pratt. In her early years, she moved to Tunbridge where she and her sister lived with their grandparents, Augustus and Edalena Boardman. In 1940, she moved to Chicopee, Massachusetts, and later graduated from Chicopee High School, where she was a member of the Nisimaha Singing Group.
In 1945, Anita married Stanley Rogers of Tunbridge. Together, they had five sons: John, Gary, Robert, Michael, and David. She moved to Waterbury in 1972 and married Bruce Nichols in 1973. The two made their home in Waterbury until his death in 1985.
In addition to her work as a farm wife and raising five sons, Anita worked outside the home as a postal worker in White River Junction and Randolph Center, a manager and bookkeeper at a cheese factory in Tunbridge, a bookkeeper and clerk at Welch’s Hardware Store, and as an LPN at the Chelsea Nursing Home and Gifford Hospital in Randolph.
Anita was a member of the Methodist churches in Chicopee and Tunbridge. She was a member of the Randolph Singers and took part in several productions, including “Oklahoma!” and “The Student Prince.” For years, she performed in the Tunbridge Minstrel Show. She was also a former member of the Barretones.
Her hobbies and interests included vegetable and flower gardening, embroidery, sewing, quilting, painting, dancing, singing, aerobics class, bowling, golfing, reading, and feeding the birds. Some of these activities won her several awards at the Tunbridge Fair. Her favorite activities revolved around family and family gatherings, and she loved to cook and bake for those occasions. She and her sister Beverly Heil were quite proud of having their chocolate cake recipes published in several magazines.
She is survived by four sons and their wives: John and Carolyn Rogers, Gary and Anita Rogers, Michael and Elizabeth Rogers, David and Valerie Rogers; a daughter-in-law, Margaret Rogers; eight grandchildren:, Jason, Melissa, Scott, Christopher, Brian, Patrick, Stephanie, and Matthew; 10 great-grandchildren: Meredith, Avery, Olivia, Jackson, Emily, Jared, Devyn, Owyn, Audrey, and Rayla; as well as nieces, nephews, and extended family.
Anita was predeceased by her son Robert Rogers; her two husbands, Stanley Rogers and Bruce Nichols; her sister Beverly Heil; and her life partner, Cecil Percy.
Calling hours will be held on Saturday, Aug. 13, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Perkins-Parker Funeral Home, 48 South Main St., Waterbury. A graveside service will be held at the Maple Street Cemetery in Waterbury Center, on Sunday, Aug. 14, at 2 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Kurn Hattin Home, P.O. Box 127, Kurn Hattin Road, Westminster, VT, 05158, or the Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice, 600 Granger Road, Berlin, VT, 05641. Online condolences can be made at perkinsparker.com.