New Hampshire
Thomas A. Ennis
Thomas A. Ennis
OBITUARY
Thomas A. Ennis, age 96 passed away peacefully on January 18, 2025 in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire after a brief illness. Tom was born in Lowell, Massachusetts on September 25, 1928, son of the late Thomas F. Ennis and Dorothy Estes Ennis. Tom graduated from Lowell High School in June of 1945. He enlisted in the United States Navy on December 31, 1945. He served on the U.S.S. Springfield based in San Pedro, California until being honorably discharged in October of 1947. Upon returning to Lowell, he followed his father into the printing industry as a plate maker for Shaw Brothers Printing in Lowell. On May 30, 1949 Tom married Mary E. Cusick at St. Margaret’s Church in Lowell. In 1951, Tom and Mary purchased a new home at 37 Main Street in North Chelmsford, Massachusetts where they raised their two children, Robert and Barry. In 1973 they sold this home and moved to 15 Circlefield Drive in Nashua, New Hampshire until they retired. Tom’s career in printing took him from Shaw Brothers printing to Northeast Offset located in Chelmsford, Massachusetts. During his time at Northeast Offset he worked to further his education by attending Fitchburg State University. He obtained his degree and left the printing industry to become a teacher of graphic arts at Nashoba Valley Technical High School in Westford, Massachusetts in September of 1969, and remained there until his retirement in December of 1989. During this time he was also a member of the Town of Chelmsford’s Planning Board as well as a member of the Chelmsford Junior Chamber of Commerce. Tom and Mary started vacationing in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region in 1962, starting in Guilford’s Lake Shore Park, then moving to the Wanderlust R.V. Park on Tuftonboro Neck from 1964 to it’s closing in1972. They then moved to Whitten’s Shore Acres Campground on Chase Point Road, also in Tuftonboro. In August of 1973, Tom and Mary purchased their home at 2 Pineneedle Cove Road on Sawyer’s Point in Tuftonboro. It was in this house that Mary passed away peacefully in her sleep on July 23, 2011, and where Tom lived out his life! It was their favorite place to be! They loved it! After Tom’s retirement they became full time residents of Tuftonboro and enjoyed life on the “Lake”, spending summers cruising around the lake in their appropriately named boat, the MENNIS, and Tom also enjoyed riding on his jet ski. During their early years of retirement they enjoyed snowmobiling during the winter months, exploring the many miles of trails in the area. After growing tired of all the snow and cold temperatures they began to spend 3 months a year in Florida. Tom continued to drive to Florida every year until he was stranded there by the covid outbreak in the spring of 2020 and decided he would spend his remaining years in Tuftonboro, his favorite place to be! Tom could be seen driving around town in his 2015 Chevy Camaro and 1964 Ford Thunderbird until shortly before his passing! He was a member of the Greatest Generation and they loved to drive everywhere! Tom loved watching football and golf on television and enjoyed the daily happy hour cocktail at 4 o’clock with his friends at his house! Tom was predeceased by his sister Carole Kelly of Long Island, New York in 1991 as well as his wife Mary in 2011. He is survived by his two sons, Robert of Tuftonboro and Barry of Tuftonboro, N.H. and Locke’s Mills, Maine,as well as by his two grandchildren, Sean Ennis and his wife Cassie of Tamworth, N.H. and Meg Ennis of Chandler, Arizona, as well as by 3 great grandchildren Beau Ennis, Rylee Ennis and Lydia Ennis from Tamworth as well.
Tom will be buried next to Mary in the Tuftonboro Town House Cemetery this spring and there will be a Celebration of his Life at the Inn on Main in Wolfeboro, N.H. on June 21, 2025. Details will be forthcoming!
New Hampshire
Texting and driving? Lawmakers want you to pay steeper fines – Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
If you use your cell phone while driving, you may want to think twice — unless you’re willing to pay twice as much.
A bipartisan bill, backed by state law enforcement, would institute higher fines for drivers who use handheld devices behind the wheel. In some cases, motorists could lose their licenses for a month or more.
Sen. Donovan Fenton, a Democrat from Keene who serves on Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s Highway Safety Task Force, pointed to state crash data as reason for the change proposed in his Senate Bill 649
The number of traffic deaths in New Hampshire has crept up over the past few years. In 2023, there were 127 fatalities, at least six of which stemmed from distracted driving, Fenton said.
“Distracted driving is becoming more pronounced, more dangerous and more deadly,” he said at a public hearing last week. “The current penalties are not enough to change behavior, particularly with repeat offenses.”
There were 133 traffic deaths in 2024 and 138 in 2025, according to the Office of Highway Safety. In 2026 so far, thirteen people have died in car crashes.
Fenton’s bill would increase the amount someone has to pay for violating the prohibition on cell phone use while driving. First-time offenders would pay $250 instead of the current $100, and on the second violation in two years, the offender would pay $500. For the third offense in two years, they would pay $750 and lose their license for 30 days. All those penalties could increase if cell phone use behind the wheel is found to be a contributing factor in a car crash.
Current law allows hands-free operation of a cell phone via Bluetooth but prohibits handheld device use. The state collected more than $568,000 in related fines and penalty assessments in the most recent fiscal year.
Distracted driving was a contributing factor in 4,520 of the state’s nearly 28,000 non-fatal crashes in 2023, according to the Department of Safety. That’s a little over 16%, though a report from the task force said officials suspect distracted driving is difficult to track and underreported in more serious collisions. Cell phones are a common culprit in distracted driving.
Ayotte’s task force has highlighted other policies that it says would increase public safety, including doubling the license suspension period for refusing a breathalyzer test.
In the first 10 weeks of 2026, three-quarters of the people arrested for impaired driving in New Hampshire refused to take a breath alcohol test, Ayotte said in a recent press release. The governor has waged a public campaign for the proposed law, Senate Bill 260, which she says would disincentivize drivers from refusing the test.
What’s next: Senate Bill 649 breezed through the Senate earlier this year. The House of Representatives is set to vote on it in the coming weeks after a committee recommended its passage almost unanimously.
New Hampshire
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Are you ready for your mornings reimagined?
Hi! I’m Garret Doll (like Ken, but less hair and not as handsome), and I’m teaming up with Katie Killourhy for 97.5 WOKQ’s new morning show, Garret & Katie in the Morning!
You ready to join us?
So, Who Is Garret Doll?
I’ve learned something about myself… I don’t like clutter. Unless it’s my clutter. Then it’s not clutter, it’s a system.
That’s probably a pretty accurate starting point for who I am. A little self-aware, a little stubborn, and definitely someone who knows what he likes. I like tacos, steak tips and lobster rolls. (Fun fact: I’ve never had a lobster roll until moving here.)
How It All Started
This whole radio thing started for me when I was 15. My mom helped me land a job at a radio station in my hometown (cause she worked there), and I fell in love with radio. I’ve never left this career.
I’ve spent my entire adult life doing this job, and I still feel like I lucked into the best job in the world. No two days are the same. One minute you’re talking about life, the next you’re playing your favorite songs, then suddenly you’re out in the community meeting people who feel like friends you’ve known forever.
Most of my career took me to places like Denver, Charleston, and Richmond. Now, somehow, it’s brought me here to New Hampshire.
Honestly, I look at it like a “this is exactly where I’m supposed to be” moment. It’s a new start on life, so to speak. You will learn more about that as we get to know each other and you listen to the show on 97.5 WOKQ.
Why WOKQ Matters to Me
WOKQ is one of those stations you hear about in radio. It’s got history. It’s got heart. And it’s built around a community that actually cares about local connection and country music throughout New England.
That matters to me.
I don’t want to just “be on the radio.” I want to be part of what’s happening here. The towns, the events, the random conversations at a bar, the places you tell your friends they have to check out.
That’s the fun part of all of this.
What I’m All About
I’m a pretty simple dude:
I’m the guy who would give you the shirt off my back
Glass half full (even when it probably shouldn’t be)
Always smiling
Authentic… sometimes too authentic
And yeah, there are definitely moments where I say something before thinking it all the way through.
So if you ever hear me and think, “Did he really just say that?” There’s a decent chance the answer is yes.
Some Quick Hits About Me
Coffee order: Americano
Drink Order: Old Fashioned or just a good local beer
Favorite food: Tacos (not even close)
Guilty pleasure show: The Big Bang Theory
Pet peeve: Close talkers… and people who are late
Random fact: I once got a tattoo of Dopey from the Seven Dwarfs because a girl I was dating wanted one. We got them together. (Don’t worry, it’s been covered up by a microphone and a rose… and I haven’t heard from her in about 20 years)
Let’s Do This Together
I’m new to town, which means I could really use your help.
Where’s your go-to spot when you just want to get outside? Best place to hike? Kayak? Local bar? Just disappear for a few hours?
READ MORE: Hidden Gems in New Hampshire: 5 Secret Places Worth Discovering
Drop me your favorites, because if there’s one thing I know, it’s that the best recommendations don’t come from Google… they come from you! The ones who actually live it.
And I’m ready to start exploring and getting to know you. So make sure to tune in to Garret & Katie in the Morning! See you there.
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