ANTHONY, Benjamin R.

The Daily Courier, Prescott, Arizona Tuesday, December 27, 2011 Benjamin R. Anthony, 55, of Littleton, Mass., died Friday, Dec. 23, 2011, at his home surrounded with love and held close by his wife, children and brother, after a courageous battle with cancer. He was born on April 10, 1956, the son of Reed and Barbara (Beatley) Anthony of Concord, Mass. He grew up in Concord and was a graduate of Concord Carlisle High School, Class of 1974, and attended Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y. He moved to California where he pursued his life-long passion for constructing buildings. He met and married his first wife, Renee Ann Shragg, and made his home in multiple locations in California before returning to Massachusetts in 1992. Ben married Jeanne (Phillips) Anthony on Dec. 24, 2009, in a small ceremony at First Church Unitarian, Littleton, and celebrated this union in front of many friends and family on May 29, 2010, at Springs Farm in Guilford Center, Vt. He worked as a construction project manager, most recently for Diversified Project Management in Newton, and previously for New England Development, State Street Corporation, Kennedy & Rossi Builders and Turner Construction Co. He was a member of the First Church Unitarian of Littleton. Ben enjoyed photography (especially working with slide film), jogging, biking, reading, traveling, and spending time outdoors hiking or chopping wood. He proudly built his home when he first returned to Massachusetts and recently built a woodshed. He was a youth group leader and teacher at his church and, in particular, greatly enjoyed teaching the Our Whole Lives (OWL) program. He volunteered supervising framing teams for Habitat for Humanity in Fitchburg, Acton, Gardner and post-Katrina Biloxi, Miss. Mr. Anthony is survived by his parents, Reed and Barbara (Beatley) Anthony of Concord, Mass., and Guilford, Vt.; his wife, Jeanne (Phillips) Anthony of Littleton; his four daughters, Jenn Anthony of Littleton and her fiancé Adam Evans of Berkeley, Calif., Kristin Anthony, Megan Anthony and Becky Anthony, all of Littleton; and his two stepsons, Nicholas and Daniel Lombardy, both of Littleton. He is also survived by his brother, Stephen Anthony, and Stephen's two children, Matthew and Caroline Anthony of Bethesda, Md.; and his sister, Charlotte DeJesus of Prescott, Ariz. He also leaves behind extended relatives and a wide circle of friends across the country, who will all miss his thoughtful generosity and humor. Information provided by survivors.