Willard Richard Kitchen Jr.

"Dick" Kitchen, age 87, of Silver Lake, and Naples, Fla., died Monday, Aug. 20, at the Bentley Village Care Center, Naples, Fla., after a long, courageous battle with brain cancer.He was born in Boston, Mass., son of the late Willard Richard Kitchen Sr. and Mildred Adell Kitchen of West Roxbury, Mass. He was the owner of the Green Granite Inn for 22 years; past owner of the John F. Chick & Sons, Inc., retail and industrial lumber company; and past president of Cornell and Underhill, Inc., Hoboken, N.J., fabricators of industrial piping. He resided in Syracuse, N.Y., Ho-Ho-Kus and Ridgewood, N.J., for 30 years, moving to North Conway in 1975, and to Bentley Village, Naples, Fla., in 2000.Mr. Kitchen showed an entrepreneurial talent early in life. From a family of very modest means, he began his working life by selling newspapers on the streets of Boston at age 12. After graduating from Industrial Arts High School in Boston, he was employed there as an assistant instructor for three years, earning money to attend Fitchburg State Teachers College, Massachusetts, where he was president of the freshman and sophomore classes. With the advent of World War II, he entered Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy, Great Neck, Long Island, N.Y. After graduating as regimental commander of the cadet corps of 2,500 men, with honors and a short term as aide to the superintendent of the academy, he served as an ensign and lieutenant junior grade in the U.S. Navy for a total of four years, seeing action in the Pacific, North Atlantic, Caribbean and Mediterranean theaters. At age 25, he had become chief engineer of the U.S.S. Attala, troop transport, and was discharged from the service in 1946. He then married Jane Marcy Aylesworth of Syracuse, N.Y., whom he had met in the Navy as a WAVE lieutenant junior grade. They were married for 61 years.He held a B.S. degree in marine engineering from Kings Point, where he has been an active alumni and supporter of the academy for many years.Starting as an industrial salesman for Cornell and Underhill, Inc., Hoboken, N.J., he gradually rose to the positions of sales manager, vice president and president of the company. He moved to New Hampshire in 1975 as part-owner of the John F. Chick Company, soon becoming owner and president. In 1979, he was selected by the Small Business Association as the winner from the state of New Hampshire and, with his wife, attended the awards ceremonies in the Rose Garden of the White House, meeting with President Carter. In 1977, he and Lloyd Drew purchased the Green Granite Inn; he later became sole owner, and sold it in 1999. He had purchased Camp Allegro, Silver Lake, in 1966, and through the years, developed it into mini-estates with emphasis on ecology and preservation of wildlife. After owning a home in Echo Acres, North Conway, for 18 years, he and his wife moved to Allegro Pines, Silver Lake. He sold the Chick Company in 1994, and in 2000, he and his wife moved to Bentley Village, Naples, Fla., a retirement community.Mr. Kitchen was a direct descendent of Mary Allerton, who arrived on the Mayflower at age 4 in 1620, married Robert Cushman, and was the last survivor of the Mayflower voyage, dying at age 86.His hobbies included fishing, golf and landscaping, but mainly love of family, business and finance management. He was a current member of both the Conway Village Congregational Church and the Naples United Church of Christ.He leaves his wife, Jane A. Kitchen; daughters Bonnie Herget, Debbie Kitchen, Wendy Spruiell and Joan Belisari; nine grandchildren; brother John Robert Kitchen; and many cousins, nieces and nephews.A service in memory and celebration of his life will be held at the Conway Village Congregational Church on Saturday, Aug. 25, at 10 a.m. There will be no visiting hours. Burial will be in the North Conway Cemetery at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Conway Village Congregational Church, Conway.