Obituary

John S. (Jack) Henderson, Ph.D

John Stanton (Jack) Henderson died May 25, 2026. Born in Bath on January 25, 1939, he was the only child of A. Bernard and Lillian (Lewin) Henderson.  Raised in Phippsburg, he attended Bath schools and graduated from Morse High School in 1957.  Finishing his undergraduate studies at Bates College in 1961, Jack accepted a NDEA Fellowship at Brown University, where he had a Fulbright Grant in 1964 and completed a Masters degree and his Ph.D in French in 1966.

Jack’s university teaching career began at Providence College in 1965.  The following year he accepted a faculty position at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where he taught for the following 32 years.  In addition, as Director of Off-Campus Studies during 24 of those years, he helped create and managed the Dickinson global education/study abroad programs. Under his direction, they became widely recognized as among the best offered by private liberal arts colleges in the nation.

In 1968, Jack married the love of his life, Mary Jane (Nugent).  Theirs was the last wedding in the “old” St. Mary Catholic Church on High Street in Bath before it was sold and razed.  Residing in Carlisle for over 30 years, they raised three children, Lynnanne, Andrew, and Marybeth.  They also spent part of each summer vacationing in Phippsburg.  In 1999, after both had retired, they moved back to Maine and settled in Phippsburg on land that Jack’s 10th great grandfather had originally purchased from the native Indians in the early 17th century (the purchase price was an annual payment of a bushel of corn and a quart of liquor).

Retirement in their home overlooking Drummore Bay was a special time in the lives of both Jack and Mary Jane.  She kept him surrounded by flowers and fresh vegetables from her multiple gardens.  He loved summers roaming the Kennebec River and nearby waterways in his 17 foot outboard.  For ten years he was self employed part time, specializing in scholarly editing and website design and maintenance.  He volunteered at the Maine Maritime Museum, St. Mary’s Church, and Midcoast Senior College (MSC) since its founding in 2000.  At the latter, he was Finance Committee Chair 3 years, Board member, long-time member of the Tech Committee, webmaster and email coordinator among other activities.  He received the organization’s Wheeler-Thompson Founders award in 2011. Taking courses, especially music courses at MSC also kept him occupied and, in his 70’s, awakened a new love — opera.  A  good listener and always ready to assist others, Jack was frequently ask to assist with computer problems and techniques.

Jack was a member of West Bath Grange #254 for over 60 years before the Grange reorganized in 2013, and, since 1999, the Joshua L. Chamberlain Civil War Roundtable.  During the course of his career, he was awarded Dickinson’s Academic Professional Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pennsylvania Council on International Education, the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages’ Service Award, and an Apostolic Blessing from Pope John Paul II.

Jack is survived by Mary Jane, his wife of almost 58 years, his children Lynnanne Toor, Andrew Henderson (Asha), and Marybeth Gamber (Gabriel), and his grandchildren Samantha, Grant, Aidan, and Ashwin.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday June 1, 2026 at 11am at St. Mary’s Church, 144 Lincoln Street, Bath. Following will be a gathering of family and friends with refreshments at the church, with burial later that day.  Condolences may be made online at www.DaigleFuneralHome.com.  In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Foundation Fighting Blindness or Midcoast Senior College.