Ronald H. Bishop

05/04/2006

Ronald H. Bishop, 70, of 37 Upton St. died Thursday at home after a long battle with cancer. He was a member of the Historical Society and the Zoning Board, an Adams Free Library trustee and a town meeting member. He also spearheaded the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail. Born in Adams on Feb. 2, 1936, son of Helene Foisy Bishop and the late Henry Bishop, he attended schools in Adams and was a 1955 graduate of the former St. Joseph's High School in North Adams. He attended Berkshire Community College, Western New England College and the Institute of Gas Technology. Mr. Bishop was employed by Berkshire Gas Co. for 36 years, first in the operating and engineering department and, later, as manager and supervisor of the production and distribution center. He retired in 1991. He was a communicant of Notre Dame Church and a member of the Catholic Churches of Adams. He was also a member of the New England Gas Association of Plant Managers; the Adams Hospital Advisory, the Adams Ambulance, the Adams Capital Improvement and Industrial Development committees; the Fall Foliage Committee in North Adams and the Adams Lions Club. He was past president of the North Adams and Massachusetts bowling associations. Mr. Bishop was a longtime coach for the Adams Football League and chairman of the Adams Memorial Library Centennial Celebration. He was also the author of "Local History: Love of the Town of Adams & Its History." He and his wife, the former Nancy A. St. Pierre, were married Oct. 1, 1955, at Holy Family Church in North Adams. Besides his wife and mother, of Wilbraham, he leaves two daughters, Beth Burdick and Cynthia Bishop, both of Adams; a son, Brian Bishop of Adams; a sister, Sally Cavanaugh of Wilbraham, and eight grandchildren. FUNERAL NOTICE -- The funeral for Ronald H. Bishop, who died May 4, 2006, at home surrounded by his family and who took his leave after a long, courageous battle with cancer, will be Monday at 9:15 a.m. at FLYNN & DAGNOLI-MONTAGNA HOME FOR FUNERALS, WEST CHAPEL, 521 West Main St., North Adams, with a Liturgy of Christian Burial at 10 at Notre Dame Church, Adams. Burial will follow in the family plot in Bellevue Cemetery, Adams. Calling hours at the funeral home will be tomorrow from 4 to 7 p.m. Memorial donations are suggested for the Adams Free Library through the funeral home. Mr. Bishop leaves eight grandchildren, Katie, Christopher and Jason Bishop, Cassie, Megan and Ryan Scott, and Sara and Nathan Burdick; a daughter-in-law, Dawn Bishop; a son-in-law, Andrew Burdick; Cynthia's boyfriend, Thomas Tinney; a sister-in-law, Diane Maloney, and several beloved nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by a sister, Nancy Beaupre. His greatest love was his family and the Town of Adams.

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