Geraldine Ingalls Halkett

BANGOR - Geraldine Ingalls (True) Halkett, 87, died peacefully at her home on March 12, 2016. She was born November 26, 1928, in Denmark, Maine, the daughter of Richmond and Jennie (Ingalls) True.
Geri was graduated from Denmark High School and attended Shaw’s Business School of Bangor. She spent her early years helping family run the Ingalls Home, an inn that served parents of children attending summer camps in the Denmark area. The home had been in the family since 1794 and still stands today in the center of Denmark village. In 1948, she married James E. Halkett and moved to Bangor. Here she began her lifelong career as a wife, mother, and professional volunteer.
Geri was a very involved mother to her two children and supported their activities. She was a Cub Scout den mother and president of local PTA organizations. She and Jim joined All Souls Congregational Church in Bangor, where she served as a trustee and deacon, as well as Sunday School teacher, past president of the Evening Guild, past president of the Women’s Association, and an enthusiastic participant in silent auctions, rummage sales, and the Christmas Tree Shop at All Souls’ busy annual Christmas Fair. She will always be remembered for her mouth-watering needhams. Geri was a past president of Athena Club. She was past president of the Bangor Women’s Golf Association and a corporator of Bangor Savings Bank. She played an active role in the Junior League of Bangor and the Altrusa Club. Geri’s lifelong commitment of helping others help themselves proved strong with her involvement in the Philanthropic Educational Organization (PEO) Chapter B Sisterhood for over forty years. She was also a life member of Eastern Star and a past president of King’s Daughters Home. She thoroughly enjoyed all her volunteer work, especially the Home for Aged Women, of which she was a board member for over fifty years, through its transition to the Phillips-Strickland House.
Geri was an avid reader and loved to cook. She loved the outdoors and fished all over Maine and New Brunswick with her husband. They also traveled widely in the United States, Canada, and abroad, and spent many winters in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, and in GreenValley, Arizona, where they had many friends. Golf added greatly to her enjoyment, both in Maine and elsewhere. She also played poker with “the girls” most every week.
She was predeceased by her sister, Barbara, and by the love of her life Jim Halkett. Geri is survived by her son Thomas R. Halkett and his wife, Diane Smith-Halkett of Orono; daughter Sandra T. Halkett of Winslow; grandchildren Stuart McCluer and wife Lane of Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina, Jesse Halkett of New York City, Rowland Halkett of Brooklyn, NY, Ezra Halkett of Bar Harbor, Mariah Halkett of Brooklyn, NY, and Lucia Helder of Orono; and great-grandchildren Lilly, Margaret, and Bates McCluer.
Geri’s family and friends wish to thank the caregivers from Loving Touch In-Home Care and St. Joseph Hospice for their respectful attention and kindness toward her during the past few weeks.
Friends are welcome to gather with the family in a celebration of her life 11 a.m. Friday, March 18, at All Souls Congregational Church, 10 Broadway, Bangor, with the Rev. Dr. James L. Haddix, Pastor and Teacher and the Rev. Renee U. Garrett, M/Div. Minister of Christian Nurture, officiating. A reception will follow in the fellowship room at the church. Interment will be in the late spring at the Berry Cemetery in Denmark. Those who wish to remember Geri in a special way may make gifts to the James and Geraldine Halkett Scholarship Fund, in care of the University of Maine Foundation, Buchanan Alumni House, 2 Alumni Place, Orono, Maine, 04469-5792. Condolences to the family may be expressed at www.BrookingsSmith.com.