Martha Lanteigne

December 7, 1950 - January 6, 2014

Martha Keeling Lanteigne, age 63, of Rome, Maine, joined her family in heaven on a rainy, winter's morning on January 6, 2014, at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. Martha and her twin sister, Marsha, were born on December 7, 1950, in Bartow County, Georgia. She graduated frm Cartersville High School in 1969. She married her cousin's best friend from the Marine Corps, Buddy Lanteigne, on August 20, 1971. She moved up to Maine with him where she spent the rest of her life, always returning home to Georgia for a three-week visit every summer. She caught up with old friends, went out to eat, attended high school reunions, stayed with family, and thoroughly enjoyed the warm weather. Martha and Buddy had two children, Aimee and Josh, whom they raised in Fairfield, Maine. She also had three grandsons, Keeling, Braden, and Jaxson, whom she loved very, very much. She faithfully attended all of their school and sporting events and enjoyed shopping for their every want and need. She frequently had the boys over for sleepovers at Nana and Papa's house, a beautiful country home down an old dirt road in Rome that Martha always dreamed of. She loved her many cats she had over the years, their bird dog, Bailey Bowater Virginia, and Buddy's sweet horse, Maleea. Martha enjoyed reading, especially about the Civil War, and she loved to shop with her sisters-in-law and nieces. She was a huge fan of Elvis Presley, whom she saw live in concert four times. She worked as the head cook at Waterville High School and kept busy, busy, busy all the time despite her heart condition. Martha expected to be home for New Year's Eve where she planned to have a belated Christmas celebration with her family, but unexpected complications kept her at the hospital where she fought like a champion for a week to overcome this setback. She put up one hell of a fight. We are all so proud of her, and will miss her dearly. She was predeceased by her parents, Bob & Billie Keeling, and her twin sister, Marsha K. Lanham. She is survived by her devoted husband of 42 years, Buddy Lanteigne, of Rome, her daughter Aimee Lanteigne of Gardiner, her son Josh Lanteigne, of Augusta, her grandsons Keeling and Braden Dorogi or Gardiner, and her grandson Jaxson O'Boyle, of Waterville. Other beloved family members include her Aunt Betty Keeling of Cartersville, Georgia, her niece, Susie Strickland, of Dallas, Georgia, her best friend, Sherry Del Stephens, of Cartersville, Georgia, special friends Gary and Beth Smith, of Adairsville, Georgia, her sisters-in-law Judy Buzzell and Janice Moreau, of Rome, and several nieces and nephews and cousins here in Maine, Georgia, and in Maryland. 2. Visiting hours will be at Wheeler Funeral Home www.wheelerfh.com in Oakland, Maine, on Thursday, January 9, frm 2-4 pm and 7-9 pm. Funeral services will be held at the Oakland United Baptist Church on Friday, January 10, at 11:00 am. Burial will follow later this month at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Cartersville, Georgia. Flowers may be sent to Wheeler Funeral Home, or for those who wish, donations may be made to the Waterville Area Humane Society 100 Webb Road, Waterville, Maine 04901.