Woody Littlefield Obituary (1930 - 2023)

WATERVILLE - Elwood “Woody” Rolfe Littlefield, 92, passed away peacefully with family by his side on Wednesday, March 29, 2023 at Woodlands Senior Living in Waterville. He was born in Old Town on November 21, 1930, the son of Asa Rolfe and Mary Ruth (Fayle) Littlefield. He grew up on the family dairy farm in Stillwater, starting at a very young age making daily deliveries with his father of over 500 quarts of milk. He enjoyed playing varsity football, basketball and baseball and loved his time as a Boy Scout, earning the highest rank of Eagle Scout. Woody graduated from Old Town High School as Vice President of his senior class in 1949. He earned an athletic scholarship to Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield where he spent a year before enrolling at the University of Maine. Following his freshman fall semester, he joined the United States Navy and was stationed in Memphis, TN and Alameda, CA, where he served as Aviation Electronics Technician Airman. After two years of service, Woody resumed his studies at UMaine where he became a member of Phi Eta Kappa and graduated in 1957 with a degree in Economics and Farm Management. Before he graduated, he traveled to Storrs, CT for the weekend to attend a UMaine/UConn football game, where he was introduced to the love of his life, Janice A. Conrad, a New Jersey native who was working in Hartford at the time. On September 7, 1957, Woody and Janice were married in Ship Bottom, NJ. Woody spent his first year after graduation working on and co-authoring a research project for the University of Maine. He spent the following year employed as a loan officer for the Farmers Home Administration. Woody was then asked to manage and expand the large farm at the Augusta State Hospital, earning the award of Outstanding Conservation Farmer in 1967. After garnering ten years of experience in Augusta, he was selected in 1969 to manage the New Jersey estate of one of the world's wealthiest women, Doris Duke. He was responsible for over 200 employees on the 3,000 acre facility which included 75 buildings, botanical gardens, 37 greenhouses, 1,600 acres of corn and soybean crops, and the world’s largest orchid collection with over 700 varieties. However, Woody and Jan were eager to finish raising their growing family back in Maine, so in 1970 they moved to Old Town where Woody became director of Old Town High School’s cooperative education program, which ignited his passion for vocational education. In 1974, he took on his greatest challenge when he was asked to create and administer one of the state’s new regional technical schools, the Southern Penobscot Vocational School in Bangor, now known as the United Technologies Center. While working tirelessly to open and run the school, he also earned his Master’s degree in Industrial Education from the University of Maine in 1977. By the time he retired in 1990, Woody had built a school attended by 600 students from ten area high schools, offering 19 programs of study. He was considered a superb director, gaining a strong reputation for his vision and his sense of fairness, earning him Maine Regional Vocational Director of the Year honors. He also served as President of the Maine Association of Vocational Education Administrators. Upon his retirement from Southern Penobscot Vocational School in 1990, Woody took on the management duties of the Black Bear Inn and Conference Center in Orono until he retired for a final time in 1995. In 2002, Woody was honored at a surprise event at the United Technologies Center where the school’s dining room was named the Littlefield Dining Room in appreciation for his vision and efforts to plan, develop and direct the school. In his free time, Woody enjoyed woodworking, playing golf, gardening and especially time spent with his family. He attended a variety of UMaine sports events and was a season ticket holder for football and hockey, as well as a proud member of the Friends of Maine Hockey. Woody was happy to be able to attend several NCAA Frozen Four hockey tournaments with his family, especially enjoying the 1993 trip to Milwaukee and the 1999 trip to Anaheim where Maine captured their two national championships. He was also an active member of many other organizations, including the Old Town United Methodist Church, the Masonic Lodge, the Anah Temple Shrine, and the Orono/Old Town Kiwanis club. He is survived by his beloved wife of 65 years, Janice, daughter Kathy Reynolds (Doug), daughter Lisa Cummings (Mark), son Daniel Littlefield (Dolly), daughter Sara Downey (Heath), sister Joan Gott, sister Janet Barker, sister Alice McInnis, brother Chesley Littlefield, sister Nancy Olmsted, thirteen grandchildren and five great grandchildren, as well as many nieces and nephews. A family remembrance is planned for a later date. The family would like to thank Woodlands Senior Living and Beacon Hospice Care for their exceptional care provided to Woody. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Woody’s name to Shriners Children’s Hospital, 51 Blossom Street, Boston, MA 02144