Wilfrid J. Belanger, 91, of Mattapoisett, a former Grand Knight in the Damien Council of the Knights of Columbus, died Saturday August 19, 2006 at Sippican Healthcare Center. He was the husband of Eleanore (Boulanger) Belanger; they had been married for 67 years.
Born in New Bedford on June 25, 1915, the son of the late Wilfrid and Regina (Desmarais) Belanger, he lived in New Bedford for many years while summering in Mattapoisett. In 1968, he moved to Mattapoisett permanently. He was a communicant of St. Anthony's Church.
Mr. Belanger was the proprietor of Padanaram Liquor in Dartmouth and Boulevard Package in New Bedford from 1943 to 1977.
Active in the Knights of Columbus, he served as Grand Knight and fundraising chairman for the Tootsie Roll campaign. He helped oversee and run numerous clambakes and bingo games for the Knights. He enjoyed square dancing, landscaping, taking care of his lawn, playing cards, family celebrations, and winter vacations in Venice, Florida.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by two daughters, Claire Bessette and her husband Russell, and Diane Garde and her husband Bob, all of Mattapoisett; seven grandchildren, Danielle (Bessette) Galley and her husband Paul, Leanne (Bessette) Nadeau and her husband Marc, Brandon Garde and his wife Stephanie, Melissa (Garde) Root and her husband Jonathan, Trenton Garde and his wife Christine, Sara Garde, and Amanda Garde; fourteen great-grandchildren, Rose and Laura Galley, Nicholas, Abigail, Christian, Andrew, and David Nadeau, Zachary and Cameron Garde, Madeleine, Aidan, and Allison Root, and Kyle and Emma Garde; and several nieces and nephews.
He was the brother of the late Jeannette Beaulieu, Roland and Edmond Belanger.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday at 11 AM in St. Anthony's Church. Visiting hours will be on Monday from 5-8 PM in the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd., Route 6, Mattapoisett. Private Entombment will be in Notre Dame Cemetery Mausoleum, Fall River. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to Community Nurse and Hospice Care, P.O. Box 751, Fairhaven, MA 02719. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.