Arnold Taylor Lapham Jr

Arnold Taylor Lapham, Jr., age 81, passed away peacefully Thursday afternoon, March 20, 2025, in Marlborough, NH, surrounded by the love of family and his dog, Tater. Taylor, a resident of Quemado, NM, was formerly of Rindge, NH, and had recently moved back East to be with family.

Taylor was born on May 6, 1943, in Concord, MA, to Arnold Taylor, Sr., and Mildred (Wilkie) Lapham, the youngest of three children. As a boy, he was a member of the Carlisle 4-H and Boy Scouts clubs. He graduated in 1962 from Concord-Carlisle Regional High School.

Taylor enlisted with the Coast Guard on April 25, 1966, and went to boot camp at Cape May, NJ. He was stationed in Michigan and Alaska. He joked about this, saying that he had wanted to be stationed in Hawaii, but ended up in Alaska. He volunteered to go to Vietnam and was sent for survival training in the California desert for two weeks. He began his Vietnam tour in 1967-68 in Cat Lo. He received the Navy Achievement Medal (with Combat V) for Meritorious Service on February 15, 1970. He was honorably discharged on April 24, 1970

Upon returning from Coast Guard service, Taylor attended and graduated from Northeast Institute of Industrial Technology with an Associate’s Degree in Refrigeration. He married the love of his life, Virginia (Ginnie) M. Donovan, on August 28, 1971, in Jaffrey NH. They resided first in Chelmsford, and then moved to Rindge, NH, in 1975. Taylor worked in maintenance and later as a buyer for the Millipore Corporation in Jaffrey, NH, then worked in the Bedford offices, until his retirement. After retiring, he and Ginnie fulfilled his dream of moving to the Southwest, living in Las Cruces, NM, and Safford, AZ before permanently settling in Quemado, NM, where they built their own cabin on a hill near Escondido Mountain and Quemado Lake. Taylor was very proficient at building electrical circuits and designed his own solar panel system to power the cabin. They made many wonderful friends within their community and looked forward to spending Friday nights with them when they gathered for potlucks at the clubhouse. Taylor and Ginnie would go to Vietnam veteran reunions, where Ginnie would sing the national anthem. Ginnie preceded Taylor in death on February 6, 2015, after 43 years of marriage. After her death, daughter Jessica would fulfill that role in her mother’s place at the reunions.

He was a former member of the First Baptist Church of Chelmsford, MA, and The Calvary Church of Albuquerque, NM. He was a lifetime member of the VFW and the Coast Guard Combat Veterans Association.

Taylor was a family man and deeply loved each member. He enjoyed going on vacation with his children and grandchildren. He and son Adam completed the 48 - 4,000 footer Appalachian Mountain Club challenge. In 1997, they climbed Wheeler Peak (13,159 feet) in New Mexico. As seasoned hikers, both father and son were humbled with the effects from the altitude. Taylor continued to climb mountains, completing three times as many climbs on his own. Taylor hiked Mt. Monadnock countless times, using old maps to uncover abandoned trails and forgotten or hidden landmarks to see on the mountain.

In his spare time, he enjoyed running, marathons, panning for gold, bicycling, building electrical and circuit panels, and gardening. When he moved to Quemado, he learned again how to garden with the different climate They especially loved the yuccas and the birdfeeders once the garden was fenced in. He was always available to help others out, whether it was a neighbor with an engine problem, working on home repair projects with one of his children, or working within his residential community to help with projects and maintaining the area during the winter months.

Taylor is survived by his children and grandchildren: daughter Jessica Joy Lapham of Marlborough, NH and her children Rielly, Liam, and Mars Harrison of Dublin, NH; and son Adam Taylor (Katrina) Lapham and their daughter Geneva, of Wisconsin; sister Marcia Hagman of Lyndonville, VT; He is further survived by several nieces and nephews, cousins, and friends in New Hampshire, New Mexico, and throughout the country.

He was predeceased by his parents, his wife Ginnie, sister Judith (Allen) Norton, niece Heidi Hagman, nephew Mark Norton and brother in law Gustov Hagman. .

A celebration of Taylor’s life will be held Saturday, May 17, 2025 at 1:00 PM at the American Legion in Jaffrey NH. Private burial will be in the family lot in Hillside Cemetery in Rindge, NH.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Taylor Lapham to the Coast Guard Combat Veterans Association at www.coastguardcombatvets.org or by mail at CGCVA, P.O. Box 969, Lansdale, PA 19446