Obituary of Walter B. Hayden

Walter Burrill Hayden, 91, a lifelong East Putnam farmer, musician and artist, died July 18 at Westview Convalescent Center after a brief illness. He was born on January 20, 1915, the son of Anna Burrill Hayden and John Joseph Hayden, in the family home on East Putnam Road, where he lived all his life. He attended East Putnam Country School, eighth grade at Israel Putnam School, and graduated from Putnam High School in 1932. He worked on the farm with his father, an immigrant from County Wicklow, Ireland, raising sheep and poultry. He married Ethel Harriet Pitkin of Putnam on June 15, 1946, in Putnam Baptist Church. Together they raised five children. He worked for the State Department of Transportation from 1948 to 1979, advancing from timekeeper to highway inspector. A talented musician, he played the Hawaiian electric guitar in square dance bands in the late 1930s and 1940s, and gave classical guitar lessons. Starting in 1942, he joined the Putnam Methodist Church and became first tenor in the male quartet with second tenor Steve Tripp, high bass Jack Mullett, and low bass George Willis. He later served as director of the Chancel Choir for many years. He sang in the Northeast Concert Choir for 44 years as a tenor and played second violin in the Willimantic Community Orchestra from 1986 to 2004. A lover of beauty, he painted some three dozen oil canvases of landscapes, seascapes, still-lifes and portraits. He raised a large vegetable garden every summer until he was 85, giving produce, including his popular sweet corn, to the community kitchen, friends, and family. He also planted many varieties of Rhododendrons, Azaleas and Day Lilies. He was a gentleman whom everyone loved. He is survived by his wife and five children, Mary Jean Hayden of Pasadena, Calif., Walter John Hayden of Powhatan, Va., Michael Edward Hayden of Los Altos, Calif., Laura Lee Russo of Plainfield, and Elizabeth Grace Hayden of Sturbridge, Mass.; their spouses, Carla Tomaso, Sheila (Doble) Hayden, Catherina Martina, Ron Russo, and Ken Heidel; five grandchildren, Sean Walter Hayden and wife Brandi, Joseph Hayden and wife Sara, Jessica Duff, Christine Hayden and Catherine Hayden; one great-grandchild, Dylan Walter Hayden, niece Jean Watson Smith, nephew Jack Watson and cousin Helen Gibson Sheldon. He was predeceased by one sister, Marion Hayden Watson, in 1995. A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. on Aug. 5, (Saturday) at Putnam United Methodist Church, 53 Grove St., Putnam. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Putnam United Methodist Church, 53 Grove St, Putnam, CT 06260. To share a memory with the family, Light a Candle at www.smithandwalkerfh.com