Williamstown and area mourn the loss of one of our best and brightest

12:00AM / Wednesday, September 19, 2001Print Story | Email Story

Williamstown lost one of its own when last weekâ€™s terrorist attacks claimed the life of 33-year-old Peter Morgan Goodrich, a passenger aboard the hijacked United Airlines jetliner that crashed into the World Trade Center. Peter Goodrich was remembered as a standout athlete with great intellectual curiosity across a wide range of interests, and for his kindness and respect for others, as a loving husband and chess-player who folded origami and lifted dragonflies out of harmâ€™s way. He grew up on White Oaks Road, with his parents, Donald and Sally Goodrich, his brother Foster and sister Kim. Peter Goodrich was a six-time All-American in track and field at Bates College, where he graduated in 1989. He lived in Sudbury with his wife, Rachel. He was educated in the Williamstown public school system and graduated in 1985 cum laude from Berkshire School in Sheffield. Donald Goodrich is a local lawyer with offices in Adams and Bennington, Vt.; Sally Goodrich is Title I coordinator with the North Adams public schools. They are longtime Williamstown residents who recently moved to Bennington, Vt. Peter Goodrich graduated with high honors in mathematics from Bates College, in Lewiston, Maine. He worked for several years at Software Emancipation Technology, and at the time of his death was the director of production development for MKS, its successor company. He was on a business trip to the West Coast, headed from Bostonâ€™s Logan Airport to Los Angeles for a trade show aboard United Airlines Flight 175, the plane that was hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Centerâ€™s south tower at 9:03 a.m. Tuesday. A service to celebrate the life of Peter Goodrich will be held today, Wednesday, Sept. 19, at noon at Old First Congregational Church, Bennington, Vt., with the Rev. Scott Barton, and the Rev. Peter Elvin, rector of St. Johnâ€™s Episcopal Church in Williamstown, officiating. Elvin called Peter Goodrich â€œone of the best and the brightestâ€ when he told the congregation of his loss Sunday morning. Peter Goodrich met his wife, the former Rachel Wallis Carr, while at Bates. She was the manager of the track team and supported him through his athletic and academic career. They were married in Guilford, Conn., Oct. 11, 1993. He is remembered for his intellectual curiosity across a wide range of topics, including mathematics, religion and entomology; for his love of the Boston Red Sox, and most important, for his kindness to many people. He was also known for his sense of humor. A story in The Boston Globe described him as â€œgentle and fair,â€ and listed his interests as ranging from kayaking and playing chess to folding origami and grinding his own telescope lens. Speaking by telephone yesterday, his mother Sally Goodrich told of how he loved dragonflies, and insisted on removing them from the driveway before backing out his car rather than risk hurting them. â€œHe was a naturally inquisitive, warm, fun and very gentle person,â€ she said. â€œHe was so curious about so many things. He always had tons of questions. â€œRachel said if at the entry point into the everlasting you get the answers to unanswered questions, then Peterâ€™s interview is still going on.â€ â€œHe loved everything. He wanted to become proficient in everything,â€ she said. â€œHe was a voracious reader, on philosophy, on religion. He was fun, silly, loud, and he gave the best hugs of anybody. They were just enveloping.â€ â€œHe was a loving husband, and truly the most fair-minded person. â€œFor his thesis for high honors in math he created his own chess programs,â€ she said. On board the doomed flight, he carried â€œa tiny little chess piece Rachel had given him to remind him of her,â€ his mother said. â€œHe read the Koran, and he worked with people from many different countries. He played chess with Russian immigrants, Serbs, Indians. He never met a person he didnâ€™t like.â€ In his obituary, the family specified that â€œhe would wish that in this time of turmoil, that we should show respect for all, including those of Arab descent and those of Islamic beliefs.â€ â€œIt is our intention to take a bit of Peter forward in a way that is in total contrast to the way he died,â€ Sally Goodrich said. The family is creating a memorial trust for charitable and educational issues that interested him. There has been an outpouring of community support, she said. â€œWe feel everybodyâ€™s love and concern.â€ And, she said, â€œthe flags are a comfort to families.â€ At Bates, Peter Goodrich was six-time NCAA Division 3 All-American, specializing in the 35-pound weight, discus and hammer. He was elected team captain, and was described by his track coach as â€œa marvelous team leader and teacher,â€ nicknamed Bear by his teammates for his size and strength. After coworkers observed a moment of silence in his memory, they held scooter races in his honor. Besides his wife and parents, he leaves a brother, D. Foster Hetherington of Brandon, Vt.; a sister, Kimberly Trimarchi of Adams, and his maternal grandfather Peter F. Donovan. Parking for todayâ€™s service will be available at the Bennington Center for the Arts on West Road; shuttle service will be provided to Old First Church, starting at 11 a.m. A memorial service will be held in the Boston area at a time to be determined. To offer condolences, please consult www.nsm.org/covey. Memorials in his honor may be made to the Peter M. Goodrich Trust for charitable and educational issues of interest to Peter in care of Hanson-Walbridge Funeral Home, P.O. Box 957, Bennington, VT 05201.

Weekend Outlook: Spring Celebrations, Clean-ups, and More

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
12:21PM / Friday, April 19, 2024

This spring weekend, there are a variety of events in and around the Berkshires, including Spring Celebrations, music, cleanups, and more.

Editor's Pick

Downtown Celebrates Spring Week

Downtown Pittsfield

Saturday & Sunday

There will be various events to celebrate spring, including a beach and tea party, and a free Kids' Paint & Sip event.

The featured event is "Where's Winston?" a spring scavenger hunt for images of the Pittsfield Police Department's comfort dog, Officer Winston, at a dozen downtown locations. More information here.

Friday