Curran, who played with Texas rockabilly legend Ronnie Dawson, died Saturday after a three-year battle with oral cancer.
Melanie Creamer
Melanie Creamer is a news assistant, who's worked at the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram for nearly 16 years. She oversees various responsibilities from monitoring the news and business email addresses – to fetching old newspaper articles and photos from the archive.
She’s the face behind the popular business “On the Move” column, which appears in Tuesdays and Thursdays newspapers.
A compassionate and soft-spoken woman, Melanie is also the writer of the newspaper’s feature obituary. Many of her colleagues say she has one of the toughest jobs in the newsroom. She tells heart-breaking stories of love and loss. She listens as parents sob uncontrollably over the tragic death of their child. She writes touching stories about couples who have been married for 60 plus years, and then die within days or weeks from each other.
Melanie was the recipient of the Maine Press Association’s Unsung Hero Award in 2015.
A native of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, she graduated from Fitchburg State College in 2000 with a degree in professional writing. She lives in Scarborough with her fiancée and is a co-parent to two daughters.
Linda Mercier, 65, fought 32-year battle with multiple sclerosis
Linda Mercier was a beautiful and vibrant woman, who rose above enormous challenges and lived life to its fullest.
Feature obituary: Ellen Moulton, 66, influential nurse, devoted to family
Ellen Moulton off Yarmouth dedicated her life to helping people with mental illness before losing a long battle with breast cancer.
Feature obituary: Wayne Boothby, 74, dedicated life to helping alcoholics recover
A former president of the Sahara Club, he dedicated his life to helping other Maine alcoholics achieve sobriety.
Feature obituary: Donald Nelson, 55, fun-loving father and cautious trucker
The picture for this obituary captures the immense love between a father and his two children. It was taken in June of 2011 – a month before Donald Nelson was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer . . .
Feature obituary: ‘Peg’ Smith, 79, longtime Old Orchard Beach employee
Margaret “Peg” Smith, a former assistant treasurer and well-respected woman in the community, died Sunday of lung cancer.
Feature obituary: Iva Leiter, 89, devoted wife and mother who held family together
Iva Leiter raised six children, supported her husband’s medical practice and dedicated her life to taking care of others.
Portland Fire Dept. to present special merit awards
Among the recipients will be a CPR instructor who provided lifesaving CPR to a cardiac arrest victim at Hadlock Field.
Feature obituary: Elda Breen, 98, beloved matriarch, lived life fully
Elda Breen waved a green pom-pom and wore black smudge under her eyes to show her team spirit last Thursday during the Senior Olympics in Biddeford . . .
Feature obituary: ‘Amazing’ Matthew Shaw, 38, overcame autism, loved music
Matthew Shaw defied the odds and rose above the challenges of autism to create a successful career and a meaningful life . . .