Jane Louise (Duffy) Friend

Jane Louise (Duffy) Friend, 85, passed away peacefully on March 8, 2025, after a courageous battle with cancer, at her home in Bath, ME, surrounded by her loving family. She was born on September 6, 1939, in Blue Hill, ME, to Lena (Candage) and Hobart Duffy. Jane graduated from George Stevens Academy and Husson College, where she began shaping the future that would bring so much joy to those around her.

As a child, Jane was always full of energy, often trying to keep up with her older brother, Walter, and his best friend, Donald. Donald, who would later become her husband of 55 years, was a constant in her life. After they married, Jane and Don settled in Bath, where they built their home – a place where she would live for the rest of her life, creating a warm, welcoming space for family and friends. There, they embraced a life full of boating, gardening, and raising their two children. Above all, Jane was a devoted mother and grandmother who took great pride in maintaining a beautiful, immaculate home.

Jane also found fulfillment in her work, first at the Bailey Evening School with her dear friend, David Smith, and later as an oral surgeon’s assistant to Dr. Bill Howell, where she formed lasting friendships that would remain close to her heart for many years.

The details of her life aren’t as important as the legacy she left behind for her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren which is encompassed in the poem to follow.

—---------------------------------------

There is no word in the English language
to hold the weight of this sorrow—
but still,
I remind myself:
your story is only beginning.

You have returned to the earth,
to the salt of the sea,
but your soul,
it rises,
drifting up toward the heavens,
where you are reunited with Don.

There, you have all the years,
all the time
you need.
Together again,
you will travel the world:
nights drinking limoncello
along the canals of Venice,
misty mornings in Alaska,
sunlit days sailing through the Caribbean.

But mostly,
you’ll sit together,
on the rocky coast of Maine,
listening to Jimmy Buffett,
him with his Jack and Coke,
and you with your glass of Chardonnay,
watching over us.

You’ll see Mya,
more beautiful than ever,
walking across the stage,
and Dani and Andrew
becoming grandparents.
You’ll watch Carolyn and JP
raise precious little girls,
dimpled and full of joy.
And when Tyler walks down the aisle,
you and Don will shake your heads,
sighing "finally,"
as Tyler smirks,
knowing you’re up there,
saying just that.

And someday,
whether I marry or not,
I’ll have a daughter of my own,
tanned skin, blonde hair,
tiny but fierce,
a wharf rat,
just like you.
And you’ll laugh when I call her name,
Jane,
as I scold her
for harassing boys twice her size.

At Christmas,
when she hands out perfectly wrapped gifts,
each bow tied with care,
we’ll say,
“She’s just like Jane.”

And though she’ll never have met you,
she’ll feel it—
a connection to you
deep in her bones,
just as we all do.

Because you aren’t gone,
not really.
You’re in the salt breeze
that sweeps through our hair,
in the scent of chocolate chip cookies
baking in the oven,
and in every memory
that wouldn’t exist without you.

So, though time never feels like enough
with the ones we love,
you live on in all of us,
and for now,
for today,
I’ll say it once more—
"I love you, Grammy."

                       ~Caitlin Jane Holmquist

—--------------------------------------------

Jane is survived by her children, Mark Friend (Connie) of Hebron, CT, and Shelly Holmquist (Carl) of Gray, ME; her grandchildren, Andrew Friend (Danielle), Carolyn Perreault (John Paul), Tyler Holmquist, and Caitlin Holmquist; as well as her five great-grandchildren, who lovingly knew her as "GG" and brought her immense joy. She was predeceased by her parents, Lena and Hobart Duffy, her brother, Walter and her husband, Donald Friend.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to:

Bath Tech

826 Shipbuilder Drive

Bath, ME 04530

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Jane Louise (Duffy) Friend, please visit our floral store.