Rosemarie Morin

Rosemarie Morin, 74, of Andover, CT passed away unexpectedly on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2024, at Middlesex Hospital in Middletown. She was born on September 29, 1949, and raised in Taunton, MA, the daughter of Hector and Bertha (Stephanitis) Morin. She is survived by her life partner and longtime friend, Richard Swartwout of Andover. She is also survived by her son, Ian Herzog, sister Suzanne, and sister-in-law Shirley Morin. She was predeceased by her sister, Mary Hardin, and brother, Gerry Morin.

Rose attended St. Jacques Catholic Elementary School in Taunton, MA, and graduated from Taunton High School, followed by earning a diploma from St. Luke’s School of Nursing in PA, becoming a licensed Registered Nurse in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. She worked at Rockville Hospital in CT and elsewhere in the region. She then went to work at Albert Einstein Hospital in NY, where she learned Operating Room Nursing. From there, she went on to work in other hospital Operating Rooms, amid life’s changes of marriage and raising a family.

She was very involved with the volunteer group Operation Smile, volunteering on missions to travel the world offering free medical procedures, such as reconstructive cleft lip/palate repairs, burn contractures, and setting broken limbs in developing third-world countries. These missions brought her to China, Vietnam, and Africa, among other places.

Rosemarie was an avid sportswoman as well; she could often be found on the slopes skiing, in the ocean scuba diving, or on the road motorcycling.

Rosemarie was also very active in Living History. As a member of the recreated 6th Connecticut Regiment, Circa 1775-80, having joined the group in 1998, she served in a variety of capacities, including Camp Nurse, Camp Follower, and Musketman and light infantry soldier. She repeatedly served, at various times, as the group’s President, Secretary, Treasurer, and First Sargent… perhaps the first woman to serve in such a role of a Revolutionary War Unit.

In 2006, she was a major part of a reenactment celebrating the 225th anniversary of the American/French Army March from Newport, RI to Yorktown, VA. This event required a commitment of time, running from June 18th, 2006, to October 7th, 2006, and covered some 685 +/- miles. Rose was the glue that held the group together, acting as the group’s nurse, drover, go-getter, Camp Mom, and chronicler. This event raised congressional awareness of the role of the French Army in America’s fight for freedom, and made it possible for the W3R to become a National Trail, now administered by the National Park Service. Rose’s exploits earned her the accolade of Hero of the W3R (Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Road), by the National W3R organization. Her accounts of this event can be read online in the Daily Logs at www.MarchToYorktown.org.

She continued in various nursing work, at times working in both medical and dental clinics, then later took a break from hospital work to be a Case Manager for a major insurance company. She eventually returned to the nursing field with a multi-year stint at the Branford VNA, and finally ended her working career at MidState Hospital in Meriden, where she retired as a ‘First Assistant,’ a position which allowed her to do the closings of surgical procedures if need be.

A memorial service celebrating Rosemarie’s life will be held on Saturday, May 18, 2024 at 12:00 Noon at Beecher & Bennett Funeral Home, 2300 Whitney Ave., Hamden, CT. Friends may visit with her family from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m, before the service. Interment will be held at the convenience of her family. Contributions in Rosemarie’s name can be given to the National Kidney Foundation, Attn. Gift Processing at HQ, 30 East 33rd Street, New York, NY 10016 or made online at www.kidney.org.