Els Hulm

Two days shy of her 85th birthday, Els Warendorf Hulm died peacefully at home on April 22, 2014 surrounded by her family. Born in the Netherlands to Marinus E.H. Warendorf and Mary Roselaar Warendorf, Els and her family immigrated to the United States, settling in Scarsdale, New York. After high school in Scarsdale, she went on to graduate from Colby College in 1951. A tour of Europe with her college friends followed, and she returned to the US aboard the SS Georgic. On board was a young man from Liverpool, England who was coming to the states to take a job at Squibb in New Jersey. Els and Jim met on the 7 day crossing, and “the rest is history.” Married June 23, 1953 in Scarsdale, New York, Els and Jim then moved to Liverpool, England. Their first child, Lawrence was born in in 1954 and died four months later. In 1955 Els and Jim returned to the states, first to Woburn and then to Winchester, MA. Their three daughters were born in MA, and Els cultivated many friendships while raising her children there. She was active as an En Ka volunteer for many years, and was a member of the First Congregational Church of Winchester. Jim’s career took them to Summit, New Jersey in 1967. The roots that had been established in Winchester never weakened. She continued to nurture the many friendships she had made in Winchester, as she actively reached out to make new friends in Summit. If you were ever a friend of Els’s, you know that the term “true, blue” applies to her. A testament to her ability to keep friendships alive and well is the round robin letter that she started in the 50’s to keep in touch with her college friends. Over the past 60 years, during times when snail mail was the only way to correspond, this package containing letters from 10 friends, delivered news of births, trips, etc. to each of the “round robin” friends hundreds of times. When Jim retired in 1991 he and Els moved to Wolfeboro to enjoy all of the outdoor activities the lakes region had to offer. Els volunteered for many years at both the hospital coffee shop and the white elephant table at the Huggins street fair. She joined many bridge groups and willingly subbed when a fourth was needed. She loved to travel and spent many hours planning and enjoying trips to worldwide destinations. Els is predeceased by her brother Harold Warendorf of Bay Head, New Jersey. She is survived by her husband of 62 years, Jim; Nancy Jones of Wolfeboro, NH; Leslie McCormack and her husband Patrick of Ipswich, MA; and Joyce Hulm and her partner William Barksdale of Amesbury, MA, her sister Jacqueline Shelton of Coral Springs, FL, and her brother Robert Warendorf and his wife Brookie of Blufton, SC. She had 6 grandchildren; Emma, Alexandra, Christopher, Rebecca, Laura and Kieran. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Colby Fund of Colby College, Waterville, Maine or the Huggins Hospital Charitable Foundation. The Baker-Gagne Funeral Home and Cremation Service of Wolfeboro is assisting the family with the arrangements. A memorial service will be held at All Saints Episcopal Church in Wolfeboro, NH at 11:00 am on May 13, 2014   To leave a note of condolence and sign the online guest book go to: www.baker-gagnefuneralhomes.com