Portland Press Herald 11/11/02 (Portland, ME)
Maude Littlefield, self-taught musician, played in bands to age 90
BRIDGTON - If you talked to Maude Littlefield, you never would have known she
was a great-grandmother.
Vibrant, inquisitive and feisty, Mrs. Littlefield was the antithesis of "a
little old lady." Her interests ranged from genealogy to astrology, calligraphy
to the Civil War.
Mrs. Littlefield died Nov. 8, 2002, at age 93.
Born on Nov. 13, 1908, she was the daughter of Leland and Harriet Philbrook.
Although she never completed high school, she would go on to manage 17 retail
stores for Cushman's Bakery Co. in Portland.
She also worked at Northwestern Mutual Insurance Co. and then at the AARP office
in Portland.
At age 84, she married her second husband, William Wayne Littlefield. The two
were lifelong friends who first met at age 4.
"They spent the next nine years being each other's soulmates," said Cheryl
Johnson of Bridgton, one of Mrs. Littlefield's three grandchildren.
Mrs. Littlefield was a talented piano player, entirely self-taught. Her parents
couldn't afford lessons, so she listened to a girl in an upstairs apartment who
had weekly lessons and learned to play by ear.
Mrs. Littlefield would go on to play in bands until she was 90. She and her
husband, who was a saxophone player, and a drummer had a steady gig at a local
dance hall as "The Old Timers."
Mrs. Littlefield was a founding member of St. Peter's Episcopal Church in
Portland, and spent much of her time making crafts to donate to the church.
She also was a member of The Daughters of the Union Veterans of the Civil War
for 80 years. She traveled around the country for that organization, attending
conventions and making sure people did not forget about the war.
"She was very patriotic," her granddaughter said. "I did her room up in red,
white and blue and she loved it."
Mrs. Littlefield was also interested in astrology and did star charts for her
daughter and grandchildren. She enjoyed baking pies for them, and often said
that the three most important things in her life were her God, country and
family.
It was not until Mrs. Littlefield had a stroke last January that she began to
slow down. Before, "she was full of ideas and enthusiasm," her granddaughter
said. "She was always looking forward to tomorrow, she never wandered around in
the past."
Even when she was sick, she said, her grandmother did not lose her spirit. She
continued her love of Western movies and novels, and continued to be "the
embodiment of the perfect grandmother."
"She'd say, 'I am everybody's grammie,' " her granddaughter said. "And she
really was."
|- Jen Fish
Maude Irene Philbrook Conant Littlefield, 93
PORTLAND - Maude Irene Philbrook Conant Littlefield, 93, died Friday, Nov. 8,
2002. She was born on Friday the 13th, 1908 and it was a very lucky day. She was
born the daughter of Leland W. and Harriet (Harmon) Philbrook. She had a rich,
productive and remarkable life, even though she had to drop out of school when
her father died in order to help her mother financially along with her two
brothers and sister. Her mother was a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse that was
beside the railroad tracks and her father worked for the railroad- that's how
they met. Maude's first husband was Frank M. Conant who died in 1962. They had
one child, a daughter, Venita Irene Conant who died in 1992. Maude loved the
piano and wanted to take lessons as a child but couldn't because of the money it
cost; but in the house where they lived there was an apartment upstairs where
another little girl had lessons every week, and Maude listened carefully. She
then practiced what she heard, teaching herself to play by ear. She was a
wonderful piano player with skill and enthusiasm. She played in a band until she
was 90 years old with her beloved second husband, Wayne who was a saxophone
player. Maude worked for Cushman's Bakery Co. in Portland for 32 years as a
retail store manager. At an age when most people retire she found another job,
working first at Northwestern Mutual Insurance Co. then at the A.A.R.P. office
in Portland until her retirement in 1992. At the age of 84, she married her
childhood sweetheart, William Wayne Littlefield, and spent the next nine years
being a home maker, very happily taking care of her husband until his death in
March of this year. Mrs. Littlefield was a lifelong communicant of St. Peter's
Episcopal Church in Portland, serving on the Altar Guild for many years. She was
a member of the Daughters of the Union Veterans of the Civil War (1861-1865) for
almost 80 years, joining when she was 15. She held many offices including
national patriotic instructor and was on the Gallaudet University Scholarship
Committee for many years. She was also a member of the Bosworth Memorial
Corporation, serving 66 years as secretary; past chief of Woodford's Temple; a
member of the Pythian Sisters; Cornerstone Chapter Order of Eastern Star; and
past department president of Ladies Grand Army of the Republic. Maude said many
times that three things were very important to her: God, country and family.
Over the years, she has kept busy in her spare time with such interests as
genealogy, calligraphy, astrology, travel, all sorts of crafts (many which she
donated to church craft fairs) and, of course, music. Maude was always open
minded, forgiving, loving and loyal, with a wide smile and the most beautiful
blue eyes that anyone was ever born with- they never faded, right up to the day
she left us. She was everyone's 'Grammie'. To all who knew her, family and
friends, their lives are much richer because she was part of it. She was much
loved in life and she will be missed very much. Surviving are three
grandchildren, Cheryl A. Johnson of Bridgton with whom she made her home the
last six months months, Kurt Johnson of South Windham, and Diane Corsetti and
husband Dennis of Sanford; and seven great-grandchildren, Peregrine V. Bracy,
Roland W. Bracy III, Michael J. Hethcoat, Sean Hethcoat, Micah Johnson, Kayla I.
Corsetti and Marco Corsetti. Visiting hours will be held Tuesday 2-4 and 6-8
p.m. at Jones, Rich & Hutchins Funeral Home, 199 Woodford Street. A Requiem Mass
will be celebrated 10 a.m. Wednesday at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, 678
Washington Avenue. Interment will be in Pine Grove Cemetery, Falmouth. Maude
Littlefield Jones, Rich & Hutchins 775-3763