This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.

Lois Jean Pitts (Hamburg) (Saunders)

Lois Jean Pitts (Hamburg) (Saunders), age 82, passed away peacefully at her home in Deep River with her family by her side. She was the daughter of Henry Fredrich Emil Hamburg and Lois Jean Imhoff.

Lois graduated from Stratford High School, Stratford, in the Class of 1960. After graduation, she chose to follow her own path in life and love. She found love and married Bill (William) Saunders II from Essex and moved to Essex with her husband and two young children. Lois often stated, “The Tri-Town area was where she wanted to stay,” and stay she did, living in Deep River for over 50 years.

Her love and life were her three boys: Bill, John, and Charles. She always had their best interests at heart. She remarried in 1968 to Lorne B. Pitts of Deep River and was determined to raise her family in the area she loved most. A few years later, she developed a new relationship with her Heavenly Father, Jehovah God, and became a studious Minister of The Scriptures. Her second husband was handicapped, and she often found herself providing for the entire family, caring for Lorne into his final days. It was often her faith in God that gave her the strength to endure the most difficult times.

Lois was an industrious worker, securing a third-shift job at the RR Donnelley Company in Old Saybrook. She sometimes took her children out of school for day trips to spend quality time with them, feeling that her full-time job caused her to miss seeing them grow. She retired from RR Donnelley and later worked for GBR Manufacturers in Chester and eventually Whelen Engineering, where she worked until the age of 67 before retiring. She excelled at these jobs, particularly in wiring components, having gained experience in her father’s mechanical engineering factory during her youth.

Family meant everything to Lois, and her love for family set a good example for her children. Raising three boys was no easy task. One time, she found John’s pet frog staring up at her through the tub drain. Bill was responsible for most of her gray hair, while Charlie could do no wrong. Lois always defended her children, no matter what, often blaming their actions on their father by saying, “You are just like your father,” ...which they thought was a compliment. The family’s mission in life was to make her laugh. John would try to make her laugh even when she was angry, which usually helped. They laughed a lot in their home. Lois used to say, “If you’re too old to laugh, you’re too old to live,” an expression she got from her father.

She was also creative, enjoying cooking, crocheting, making wedding cakes, and many other crafts and hobbies. She always gave generously and had a loving, caring heart. Some might think she had a hard life or that she was a bit opinionated (which may seem to be every woman’s right.). Though Lois never complained about her “Lot in Life’; she never complained about the pain she was in. She always put others ahead of her needs. Her son Charles once said, “If mom bets on red, we all bet on black.” That’s just the way it was.

Yet, it was her challenging life that made her the mighty woman she was. Her faith in God helped her endure, and her hope was in the scriptures, especially the Resurrection Hope. She sometimes spoke about meeting her baby brother in the Resurrection." He had passed away as an infant who was named Baby Boy on his birth certificate because he didn’t live long enough to be given a name. Lois kept a copy of that birth certificate as a cherished memory that she would someday meet her Baby Brother in the Resurrection. Baby Boy passed the year before Lois was born. If Lois could hold onto that memory for 82 years, then, no doubt, how much more so, Our Creator holds them both in His memory. For He will most certainly fulfill his promise. For it is impossible for God to lie! is what Lois believed.

In her final seven years, Lois was ill, and she was cared for by her loved ones. She taught them much about herself and about life, and they cherish the time spent with her in her final years. The last great teaching she gave her son John was, “Be quick to forgive and let love cover over a multitude of sin.” She did this by example.

Lois is survived by her three sons, William B. Saunders III, John W. (Dawn) Saunders, and Charles D. Saunders; sister Coni-Jo (Vinny) Aparro; stepsister Tina Butack; cousin Emily Decker; and five grandchildren, Billy Saunders IV, Meghan Saunders, Tyler (Ashley) Saunders, Zachary Saunders, and Cody Saunders.

The family would like to thank the Deep River Ambulance Association and Essex Ambulance Company for their many responses to Lois’s needs and emergencies, the Pandemonium Thrift Shop in Deep River, and the Goodwill Store in Clinton for finding a new home for her crafts and possessions. They also appreciate the love and support of the community for their kind words and prayers.

Her memorial services will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 13, at The Deep River Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 179 Grove Beach Rd, North, Westbrook. Her services can also be viewed on Zoom: Meeting ID: 258164919 Passcode: Heb102425. There will be a reception of friends and family at 2 p.m. at the Deep River Ambulance Association, 284 Elm Street, Deep River. All who attend on Zoom or in person are welcome to the reception, where food and refreshments will be provided.

Her remains will be sent to a family plot in Jupiter, Florida.

In lieu of flowers, it is asked to visit the website JW.ORG for a virtual tour of God’s Promise of a New Earth. Alternatively, contributions can be made to The VRHS Trades Award, an associate of The Community Foundation of Middlesex County, which supports local youth entering the trades or workforce upon graduation from high school.