SIMPSON, ROBERT B.

TALIQUE, N.M.—Robert Bisbee Simpson, 85, died November 30, 2005, at his home in Talique, N.M. He was born in Boston, Mass., in 1920, the son of Carrie and Arthur Simpson. During World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, joined the elite Raider Battalion and served in the South Pacific where he received a Purple Heart.

Following the war, he earned an Associate degree in animal husbandry from the Stockbridge School of Agriculture in Massachusetts.

He married Evelyn Biggar of Sussex, New Brunswick, in 1947. In 1950, they purchased a farm on Peth Road in Braintree. During this time, the farm and its technology was expanded to include a new barn and milking parlor. He was constantly striving to improve the land, and in 1966 was honored with an Outstanding Conservation Farmer award.

He also served as a Vermont State Representative and Senator in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1971, his son, Bob, took over the farm while he moved into equipment sales and management, working at Airport Tractors, before relocating to New Mexico, where he also worked in sales and management positions in farm, industrial, and heavy equipment companies.

In 1973, he married Mary Lou Waite. In his leisure time, he enjoyed horseback riding, sailing, and building. He was always active, and in his retirement years he enjoyed gardening, building furniture, and making improvements around his property.

He was predeceased by his parents and one brother.

Survivors include his wife, Mary Lou; his sister, Dorothy Saylor of Surprise, Ariz.; four children, Judy Schneider of Middletown, Mass., Bob and Gary Simpson, both of Braintree, and David Simpson of Topsham, Maine; and two step-children, Debbie Spencer of Glendale, Ariz., and Bruce Simpson of Kittitas, Wash. He is also survived by many grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held later in the spring.