Walter Thomas Browher, Jr., of Meredith, NH, passed away on Tuesday, March 31, at his daughter's home, surrounded by family. He was 91 years old.
He was born to Nettie (Newman) and Walter Thomas Browher, Sr. on September 19th, 1923 in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia, where his grandfather and father ran a bakery and grocery store. He earned his high school diploma from Glynn Academy in 1941 and worked at Brunswick Pulp & Paper before joining the US Navy in 1942. During World War II, he trained in aircraft mechanics and aerial gunnery. He eventually would be stationed in Hawaii, New Caledonia, and Guam, where he repaired and maintained Wildcat, Hellcat, and F4U Corsair fighter aircraft. After his discharge at the end of the war, he played trombone along with his brother, Roger, who played trumpet. They both played in a dance band and performed in and around Brunswick, and The Golden Isles. He met his wife, Marie, of Manchester, NH, who was working as a waitress at The Cloister Hotel on Sea Island. They were married on St. Simons Island, Georgia, August 1, 1950 at St. William's Catholic Church. They were married for 64 years until her passing in January of this year.
Walter had a long career as a sign maker, owning and operating Atlantic Neon Signs in Brunswick before moving with his family to New Hampshire in 1974. He worked at Northern Electric Signs, Paquette Signs, Sign Masters of Laconia, and The Sign Shop, designing and painting signs well into his 80s. He was an active communicant of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Meredith, as a former parish council member, Eucharistic minister, and long-time member of the parish choir until two years ago.
Survivors include his sons, Christopher Browher and his wife Lynn, of Laconia; Michael Browher and his wife Patricia, of Meredith; daughter, Celeste Woodbury and husband James, of Belmont; three younger siblings, a brother Roger Browher of McIntyre, GA, and sisters Virginia Browher Lipthratt, of Brunswick, GA, and Eleanor Browher Miller, also of Brunswick. In addition, he is survived by several nieces, nephews, eight grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren, as well as his beloved dog, Bailey.
Walter was an avid gardener, and a lover of nature and animals. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Squam Lake Science Center in Holderness, NH
To view Marie Browher's Book of Memories, please copy and paste the following link into your internet browser's search bar:
http://www.mayhewfuneralhomes.com/book-of-memories/2030303/Browher-Marie/index.php