Doc Hussey had a passion for animals and his community

Whether in a barn in the middle of the night helping to deliver a calf or driving his famed Percheron horses into the competition ring at Fryeburg Fairgrounds, Dr. Eugene Hussey had the same passion for animals and for life. He was one of the few people who lived his dream life, knowing at the age of 10 that he wanted to be a veterinarian and also own a farm. Hussey, 85, who passed away at his home peacefully early Sunday morning, packed plenty of living into his life, finally retiring from his vet practice at the age of 83. He leaves a long legacy of accomplishments including creating the Carroll County Kennel Club, which celebrates its 58th year of existence next month with the annual dog show at, appropriately enough, Hussey Field, a portion of land given to the town a number of years ago. Dr. Hussey was a member of the Fryeburg Fair Association for over 50 years, serving as the show vet and an active member of the finance committee. He started one of the the first veterinary practices in Mount Washington Valley and ran it for over 50 years on West Side Road."We could only wish to live so long, never mind do all of the things he did," recalled Justin Hussey, his grandson, Tuesday afternoon.Visiting hours will be held Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Furber and White Funeral Home in North Conway. Funeral services will be held Friday at 11 a.m. at the First Church of Christ Congregational in North Conway "He was a wonderful man," Liz G. Hussey, his wife, said. "Work was his passion. He loved his vet work. He had no problem at all getting called out in the middle of the night to barn to help an animal. We had a wonderful 10 years together."Hussey was born in Parsonsfield, Maine, where his family lived on a small farm. As a teenager, while attending Porter High School in Porter, Maine, he raised beef cattle and showed them at Fryeburg Fair. He attended University of Maine at Orono receiving his bachelor's in animal husbandry in 1943. After a brief stint in the Army, he received his doctorate of veterinary medicine from Michigan State University in 1952. After going through the service and school, he purchased a business in Conway from Dr. Eugene McKenzie.Justin Hussey credits his grandfather with teaching him so much about animals, farming and life in general. "I know he meant a lot to a lot of people," he said. "I think he made a large contribution to our community. We're all better for having known him."Hussey spoke highly of his grandfather's passion for horses, Percherons in particular. "The quality of his animals was second to none," he said. "When I look back I think I'm as fortunate growing up the way I did as anyone. We went all over from Florida to Canada when I was in grade school (showing horses). He was known for his draft horses he was one of the premier Percheron draft horse hitches in North America. Was ranked in the top five in North America for many years. A lot went into it, but it was something he really enjoyed. He'd go and scout horses every spring in Ohio and sometimes he saw something he liked and brought it back home.The Percheron horses were a staple in yearly parades in Mount Washington Valley and also took part in sleigh rides during the annual New Year's celebrations. "They were pretty much a fixture," Hussey said. "I don't think people realized or appreciated all of the time that went into (getting them ready) each year."Dr. Hussey opened Husseys Veterinary Hospital in North Conway in 1952, in addition to establishing the Eastern Slope Farm in 1965 and starting a practice in Gorham in 1967."He told me once," Hussey said of his grandfather, "at the age of 10 he knew there were two things he wanted to do in his life. One was to be a vet and the other was to own a farm. He came here in 1952 with nothing and look what he accomplished. He opened two practices and had one of the largest dairy farms in the state. One of the things that blows my mind is I'm 28 years old, and my wife and I started our farm three years ago. He didn't start his farm until he was in his 40s, plus he continued to run two other businesses."... I owe what I do, my life in agriculture, to my grandfather," he continued. "Whenever I went anywhere (as a student at the University of New Hampshire where he studied agriculture), if my last name came up someone would always say, 'Are you related to Dr. Hussey?' You don't find many vets like him now who work seven days a week on large and small animals. I remember when I was in kindergarten the bus would drop me off at his office in the afternoon and I'd ride along with him on house calls. I'd get to hold the scalpel or whatever, I was his little helper." Roy Andrews, of the Fryeburg Fairgrounds, spoke fondly of his friend Dr. Hussey, whom he met as a teenager. "We had a large farm in North Fryeburg and he was our vet," Andrews said. "Doc was a great part of our fair family, it's a big loss. He was a fixture here at the fair. He was the show vet for as long as you could remember. He had a great love of horses and a great interest in the fair as a whole. Since he got on the fair board 50 years ago the fair has grown quite a bit."Andrews said Fryeburg Fair has grown from six departments to 40 over the past 50 years. It has increased in size from 45 to 180 acres and gone from 10 to 110 buildings on the grounds."Doc was a real friend to so many of us," Andrews said. "He did a great job for both the fair and the animals. He was a real animal man. Some people might not know it but Doc was known all over the country for his Percheron horses."In 1952, at the time of arriving at his practice, Hussey took over running the Eastern Slope Animal Welfare League, an animal shelter that operated for over 50 years trying to place stray dogs, cats, puppies and kittens in homes. Routinely, it handled as many as 1,200 animals a year.In 2002, Dr. Hussey received New Hampshire Farm Bureau Federation's annual Profile Award for distinguished service to agriculture and rural life. "There won't be another person like him," Justin Hussey said. "There might have been some who disagreed with him but they always respected his work ethic. He told me one time, "If I had all of the money owed me for services, I'd be a quadruple millionaire.' He didn't care about the money, he always put the animals and people first."