Obituary: Harry Brake '77

Harry R. Brake was born on Sept. 21, 1959, at Catherine Booth Hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to Clinton L Brake Sr. and Hendrica (Walvis).

Harry passed away on June 24, 2021, surrounded by family.

He lived in Chomedey, Quebec, until he was 17, when he and his family moved to Manchester, New Hampshire. Harry had the unique honor of graduating from high school twice, once in Canada at Selwyn House School, and then a second time graduating from Central High School in Manchester.

One of Harry’s first loves was cars. He began taking apart his father’s car when he was just five years old. He always had a deep-seated curiosity to figure out how things worked. His pride and joy was his 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1. He bought and worked on it until it gave him all the power and speed that he could get out of it. He could be found many nights cruising Elm Street in Manchester, occasionally drag racing fellow gear heads. His love of cars quickly took a back seat when he met his wife, Cheryl (Fosher), in the summer of 1977 while cruising Elm Street. They were married on Sept. 22, 1979, beginning their 42-year journey.

Harry and his family moved to Hillsborough in 1988, but finally settled in Marlborough in 1991, where Harry gained a second family becoming a part of the Marlborough Fire Department. He was a longtime member of the fire department until retiring in 2011.

Harry had a career spanning 45 years in the automotive industry. He worked for various dealerships, ranging from Ford, Chevy, Porsche, Dodge, Nissan and Audi. With Ford being his all-time favorite, he was a master mechanic for Ford. Harry worked as the parts and service director at Nissan of Keene for 18 years and finished his long career at Monadnock Ford.

Family was always first for Harry — until his last breath, everything he did was for his family. His love for his two children, Tanya and Stephen, was only overshadowed by the births of his three grandkids: Liam, Hunter, and McKenzie. They were the loves of his life, his pride and joy.

Harry took a great amount of pride in many things. He was always a big supporter of veterans, as his father was a veteran of World War II and Cheryl’s uncles were also veterans of the Vietnam War. He also loved animals, dogs being his favorite. He could always be found with one of the family dogs at his feet.

Harry is predeceased by his parents, Clinton L. Brake Sr. and Hendrica (Walvis); and his in-laws, Richard J. Fosher Sr. and Maureen (Peterson). He is also predeceased by his brother, Michael. He is survived by his wife, Cheryl (Fosher), of Richmond; his daughter, Tanya, and her two sons, Liam and Hunter, of Richmond; his son, Stephen, and his daughter, McKenzie, also of Richmond; and his brother, Pastor Clinton L. Brake Jr., his wife, Linda (Melvin), and their daughter, Barbara, all of Lyndonville, Vt. Harry is also survived by many other extended family members.

Public calling hours will be held Friday, July 2, 2021, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Fletcher Funeral Home, 33 Marlboro St, Keene. Donations in Harry R. Brake’s memory can be made to K9s for Warriors.