Obituary of John W. Ingraham

John W. Ingraham Jr., 86 passed away December 20, 2014 at home surrounded by his family. He was born in Knox on July 3, 1928, the son of John W. and Carrie (Greeley) Ingraham. He graduated from Freedom Academy and went to farming with this father and brother, Albert, in 1946. John dedicated all of his life to agriculture, building a strong and thriving dairy farm with the help of his loving wife, Beverly (Higgins) and five children, Michael, George, Rodney, Elaine (Green) and Greg. Currently, the farm milks 500 head of registered Holsteins and over 1,000 head of cattle. Throughout the years, he continued to flourish and started a snowmobile and farm equipment dealership in 1960 called Ingraham Equipment, which continues today. During that time, John was President of the Maine Quality Holstein Sale for 25 years and President of Pine Tree Holsteins. He served as selectman for the Town of Knox for six years and was a Board of Director for SAD #3. He was a member of the local/State Grange and Masons for over 50 years, serving as an officer throughout that time. He received the “Farmer 0f the Year” award in 1994. And in 2001, he received the “Maine Dairy Shrine and Leader” award from the Maine State Grange and the “Friends of Agriculture” award from Farm Bureau. He served as a member for Eastern States Expo for 43 years with his most cherished award being “Outstanding Farmer of the Year” in 2010. In later years, John collected Ingraham clocks which you can hear tick tock throughout the house. He loved his woodworking making broom holders and napkin holders for his family and friends. John was predeceased by his brother, Albert; his sisters Acadia (Price) and Hattie (Storer), along with his grandson, Christopher Michael Ingraham. He is survived by his loving wife, Beverly, of 68 years and his five children and their spouses, Michael and Jackie, George and Holly, Rodney and Deborah, Elaine and Al and Greg and Shirley. He will be greatly missed by his 12 grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren, 2 great, great grandchildren, his nieces and nephews and his dear friends. Visiting hours are from 2 to 5 pm on December 28th at Riposta Funeral Home. The funeral service will be held on December 29th at the Knox Baptist Church at 1 p.m.. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Cancer Society or Knox Booster Club, c/o Karen York, 923 Halldale Road, Montville, ME 04941. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family at www.ripostafh.com.