Our favorite Apple Man has gone to tend the orchards of heaven.

Richard 'Dick' Fabrizio, 87, passed away on March 21, 2024, at his home, Windy Ridge surrounded by his loving family.  He was born in Brockton, MA to Ethel (Hayward) and Frank Fabrizio on March 10, 1937.  He was the oldest of five children.  They moved around the country as a family but called East Bridgewater, MA, and Brockton home.

Dad started working on dairy farms at the age of 12. He told great stories of riding in the back of the farm truck to bring produce into Boston Market.  He worked while going to school and ultimately put himself through college.  He graduated from the Bristol County Ag High School and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.  It was at a UMass dance that he met 'the catch of his life', his wife Ann (Lawson).

After college, he worked as a milk tester in Connecticut and for the Boy Scouts of America before moving to New Hampshire to work as the Grafton County 4-H Agent in 1965. Dad worked for 4-H for 30 years before he retired in 1995.  He is remembered for traveling the county to judge 4-H gardens and taking groups of kids on hiking and canoeing adventures as well as dairy judging tours. Two years after moving to North Haverhill he and Ann bought a dairy farm nestled on a hill.  It was here that his family grew along with his dream to start an apple orchard.  His five children and Windy Ridge Orchard were his pride and joy.  He started planting apple trees in 1968 and grew his business into what is now a 'Family Destination' in the White Mountains.  Dad loved working out in the orchards and greeting customers from near and far.  He could be seen enjoying a cup of coffee and chatting with visitors on picture-perfect fall days.  Dad always worked hard, loved what he did, and ran the operation until his final days.

Dad was an avid reader of history and fiction and loved working on puzzles.  He enjoyed being outdoors every chance he had.  He loved hiking, fishing, canoeing, and traveling.  His favorite trips were canoeing the Koksoak River with friends in northern Quebec, hiking local mountains with his sons, visiting his daughters in California, Florida, Paris, Senegal, and Costa Rica, exploring the British Isles with Ann, and traveling on agricultural trips around the US, Australia, New Zealand, and Cuba. Dad was an active member of the state agricultural community as well as the town of Haverhill.  He held numerous leadership roles for the state and county Farm Bureau and Grafton County Conservation District and was a member of the NH Fruit Growers Association.  He and Ann received the Grafton County Conservation District's Legacy and Stewardship Awards.  He received the Grafton County and State Farm Bureau Profile Awards.  Windy Ridge Orchard is considered an NH Farm of Distinction.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ann; his children Rick (Grafton, NH), Lynn (Haverhill, NH), Mark and Noelle (Charlotte, NC), Nancy (St. Johns, FL) and Sheila (Haverhill, NH); his grandchildren Shane, Shayla, and Shayden Zona, Evan Fabrizio, and Max Fabrizio; his great grandchildren, Avery Fabrizio and Baby Williams (arriving this summer); and his siblings Janet (Wareham, MA), Donna (Thousand Oaks, CA), Susan (Brockton, MA), and Dan (Burien, WA).

A celebration of life will be held at Windy Ridge Orchard on Saturday. April 6, 2024, beginning at 11:00 am.