The Lake is Calling and I Must Go

Tim was born in Princeton NJ on July 3 1956 to Isabel Naomi (Kellers) Chiquoine and Alexander Duncan Chiquoine. He died at home of acute myelocytic leukemia and cardiac issues on September 15, 2022.

Tim spent most of his younger years in Clinton, NY. However, his summers were spent at their family cottage on the water of Keuka Lake NY. His love of water was a theme throughout his life! 

Tim moved to the Berkshires in 1985 when he married “the love of his life” aka ‘cute stuff’, Jody (Burns) Chiquoine. He was an amazing cook and especially enjoyed making exquisite desserts. Tim and Jody met at Camp Choconut, thus starting an incredible relationship that spanned 50 yrs. They were married 37 years at the time of his death. Together, along with their Newfoundlands and Great Pyrenees dogs, they hiked and walked the Berkshire trails every day. Tim was a keen observer of nature and the rhythms of the earth.

He adored animals great and small. Tim was an active volunteer with NorthEast Pyr Rescue, a non-profit organization dedicated to the rescue of Great Pyrenees dogs. He fostered, cared for and transported many of these dogs over 23 years.

Tim was an integral part of establishing, owning, building and maintaining Fitter Critters, a Canine Rehabilitation Facility in Lee, MA. He built the entire facility with great love for his wife. He is adored by the Staff and admired with heartfelt gratitude by the clients (canine and human)!

Tim also owned Trees Reborn, his woodworking business. He was an accomplished masterful woodworker creating beautiful furniture and other unique wood carvings and pieces.

He was a brilliant mechanic. Although he studied engineering in college, his skill set went beyond this. In the words of his brother, Tim was one of those rare people whose interests were so diverse that he might start the morning rebuilding a carburetor, move on to trimming a 15ft high hedge that he beat back every year, then jack up the barn to put in new sill plates and finish the day by carving an elephant head for the arm of a bubinga garden bench! There was not much that this Superman could not do!

Tim was an avid and skilled sports fisherman. Starting in 1995 he spent summers on his beloved Pine Island in Maine. The eagles know his boat well and swoop close for accidental carrion. For the passengers and fellow fisherman this sight of eagles is as thrilling as the fishing! He happily fished there in all seasons with friends and family. Andy Bradford of Spruce Lodge Lakeville Maine was his dearest and closest friend at the lake and was always in his heart.

Tim began his love affair with Maine in the late 1980s when visiting one of his best friends, Tumpy May ( Waldoboro, ME). Through Tumpy, Tim was introduced to the Pemaquid Oyster Festival. 

In the words of his friend, Tim played a big part in the production of the annual Pemaquid Oyster Festival on the Damariscotta River water front from its beginning in 2001 until the temporary halt in 2020. For this one day event,  he did everything from hauling out over 15,000 oysters served each year, to stocking the oyster bars and doing more than his fair share of shucking….all while barefoot in sometimes inclement late September weather! He will be greatly missed by festival organizers, fellow shuckers and attendees from all over New England. 

Tim was dedicated to this Festival because it is the primary funding for the Edward A Myers Marine Conservation Fund which has awarded over $150,000 in small Grants to many Mid-Coast Maine coastal land trusts, conservation groups, and marine educational organizations. 

To most people, Tim was a bit bigger than life! Not only was he a big guy but his size was also measured in his absolute clarity about who he was and who he was not! He ‘thought outside the box’. He chose an unconventional life path, ignoring societal trends and pressures. He was skeptical and analytical about most things thereby questioning many traditional “norms”. Tim lived life fully. He knew what was important; Not things and stuff. What mattered was the fiercely rich love, loyalty and devotion to family and friends. There could be no better friend. 

The family he loved so much are: Jody Chiquoine (Lee, MA), Steve and El Chiquoine (Reedsburg, WI), Chris and Nance Chiquoine (Essex Jct, VT), Ken and Sclinda Chiquoine (Peterborough, NH), Kate Chiquoine Stamm and JP Stamm (Harvard, MA).

His brother and sister in laws: John and Bobbie Copeland (Carson City, NV), Bill (deceased) and Jeanette Burns. 

Tim’s dearest and Closest Friends: Trumpy May and Jean Jameson (Waldoboro, ME), Andy Bradford (Lakeville, ME), Tom Campbell (Deansboro, NY), Gary Joyner (Lenoxdale, MA).

This clarity and truth to inner values  brought him success and happiness throughout his life. 

Tim lived in accordance with the Maine slogan “ The Way Life Should Be”. Now he would say,

                                                “ I’m Done. Gone Fishin’ with Bill!”

Tim asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in his name to either of the organizations he loved:

                                       The Edward A. Myers Maine Conservation Fund

                                                                 PO BOx 302

                                                       Waldoboro Maine 04572

                                                                        OR

                                                         NorthEast Pyr Rescue

                                                               PO Box 704

                                                            Lee, MA 01238