Richard “Dick” Wheaton, 65, of Manchester, NH, died Tuesday, November 25, 2008 at his home following a lengthy illness. Mr. Wheaton was born in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada on January 31, 1943, a son of the late Hollis and Sadie (Gould) Wheaton. He was a resident of Manchester for the past 15 years, formerly living in Sackville, NB, Canada. While living in Canada he owned and operated Richard Wheaton Trucking and he was a long distance truck driver. Dick worked for Steve Sarette Excavation in Goffstown as a heavy equipment operator since he moved to NH in 1993, retiring in 2006. He enjoyed working with his hands and he became a self-taught backyard mechanic, doing expert bodywork, paint and car restoration. Dick enjoyed puttering around the house and fixing anything that he could find.
He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Meredith (Estabrooks) Wheaton of Manchester, two daughters, Ashley Thresher of Manchester, Tammy Wheaton of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, two sons, Kevin Wheaton of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Gordon Wheaton of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, six grandchildren, two sisters, Simmone Sarette of Sackville, NB, Canada, Debbie Wheaton of Sackville, NB, Canada, a brother, Wayne Wheaton of Sackville, NB, Canada and also by nieces and nephews.
Following cremation a memorial service was held on Saturday, November 29, 2008 at 2:00pm in the Victory Baptist Church, 78 Litchfield Rd., Londonderry, NH. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to the PKD (Polycystic Kidney Disease) Foundation, 9221 Ward Parkway, Suite 400 Kansas City, MO 64114-3367. Please make checks payable to: PKD Foundation. The Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 15 Birch St., Derry, NH is handling the arrangements.