Clifford Andrew Manchester

BLUE HILL – Clifford Andrew Manchester died after a brief illness on June 28, 2026, at the age of 101. Other than his overseas service during World War II and a stint in Vermont during the Covid epidemic, he chose to live his life in Maine, where he shared his love of nature and the people of Maine with family and friends.

Born in Bar Harbor on Sept. 20, 1924, he grew up in Northeast Harbor, Maine, the oldest of Russell and Mona Manchester’s five children. In March of 1943, he graduated early from Gilman High School to start basic training and eventually served in the South Pacific doing radio direction finding for the Army Air Corps. After the war ended, he served in the occupation of Japan at General MacArthur’s headquarters in Tokyo. He was discharged in March 1946 at the rank of corporal.

With the help of the GI Bill, Clifford earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Maine in 1950. His first job was with A.P. Wyman Construction in Waterville. Prompted by a tip from the owner of his boardinghouse, he met his future wife, Ruth Haglund. Ruth was charmed by his ability to drive while sipping Moxie through a straw from a bottle he placed in his shirt pocket. They married in Waterville on Oct. 11, 1952.

Clifford and Ruth raised three children and were highly engaged in the Waterville community. They were active members in the First Baptist Church and then the United Church of Christ. Clifford served on the Waterville School Board, becoming Chair, as well as on the Maine School Board Association, where he was President for a time. He was a long-time member of the Kennebec Valley Regional Planning Commission, the Kennebec Mental Health Association, Toastmasters Club, and the Kiwanis Club.

In 1956, Clifford began his 35-year career in the pulp-and-paper industry, eventually becoming the chief engineer at Scott Paper Company’s Winslow paper mill and helping with the design the new Somerset mill in Skowhegan.

Cliff was a devoted husband and father, camping with the family on First Roach Pond and traveling to visit relatives in New England and beyond. Frequent trips back to Mt Desert Island instilled a love for that part of Maine in his children, all three of whom have continued the tradition with their families.

Retirement afforded Clifford and Ruth more time at their cabin in Eastbrook. The Union Congregational Church of Hancock welcomed them as new members. They greatly enjoyed visiting and hosting their growing extended family, travelled internationally including numerous Elderhostel trips, and made trips to Texas, Virginia, and upstate New York to visit grandchildren. Clifford became a 20-year volunteer at the former Thayer Hospital in Waterville and continued his involvement with various community organizations including the Evening Sandwich Program. After Ruth died in 2010, he remained in the family home until 2020, when the pandemic prompted a move to Vermont to live with his daughter. In 2021 he moved into an apartment at Parker Ridge in Blue Hill, where his kindness and positive outlook on life won him new friends.

He is survived by his three children, Ralph (Cynthia Christy), Joyce (David Stapleton) and Jane (David Ng); nine grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren, with another one due in August; his youngest sibling, Elizabeth “Betty” Johnston; and several nieces and nephews.

The family is planning a celebration of his life for late summer.

In lieu of flowers,

donations may be made in his memory to:

Friends of Acadia at https://friendsofacadia.org/membership-giving/donate/ or to:

the Union Congregational Church of Hancock (Maine) at https://www.hancockucc.com/ways-to-support