Obituary of Alan Arnfield

Alan Earle Arnfield, Sr. 88, of Poughkeepsie, died Sunday, March 22, 2015, peacefully at the Lutheran Care Center, Poughkeepsie. Born on April 6, 1926, in Haverhill, Massachusetts, he was the son of the late A. Earl Arnfield and the late Doris E. Arnfield. He was the husband of Ruth E. Arnfield, the love of his life for 64 years. Alan was educated in Methuen, Massachusetts's schools. Upon graduation he served honorably in the U.S. Navy during World War II, until his discharge in 1946. He graduated in 1955 from Northeastern University, Boston with a degree in electrical engineering. He was employed as an electrical engineer and manufacturing engineer by IBM Poughkeepsie for over 35 years. He was a member of the Poughkeepsie United Methodist Church. Alan's passion for being a amateur ham radio operator started while he was a teenager (W1NNG) and carried thru his retirement years (K2JCN). He taught ham radio certification courses to aspiring students for many years. He utilized his ham radio skills supporting community activities as well as local emergency response coordination. Alan was an avid private pilot of 17 years earning an instrument pilot rating. He served as President of Lazy 8 Flying Club based at Dutchess County Airport. Alan was a Master Mason in the Massachusetts and New York Masonic Lodges. Besides his wife Ruth E. (Stickney) Arnfield, he is survived by a brother, Robert I. Arnfield; a son Alan E. Arnfield Jr. and his wife Jenny, a son, David P. Arnfield and his partner Julia M. Checchia, a daughter, Evelyn A. Franks and her husband Brian; grandchildren Jonathan Arnfield, Stephanie Arnfield Freeman and her husband Rod, Christian Arnfield, Andrew Franks and Ethan Franks; and 5 great grandchildren Justin, Ella, Julia, Olivia and Corey. Many nieces, nephews and friends also loved him. All will miss him. The family wishes to thank the staff at Lutheran Care Center, Poughkeepsie for their dedicated care of Alan for over 2 years, especially in the last days and hours of his life. Visitation will be Sunday, March 29th, from 3pm to 6pm at the Timothy P. Doyle Funeral Home, 317 Hooker Avenue, Poughkeepsie and Tuesday, March 31st from 10 am to 12pm at the Douglas & Johnson Funeral Home, 214 Main Street, Salem, NH. The funeral service will immediately follow and burial will take place in Elmwood Cemetery, Methuen, Massachusetts.