Henry John Aylward Iii

Henry John Aylward III
Webster, New York

Hank passed away on January 24, 2022 at home with his wife by his side.

He was predeceased by his father, Henry John Aylward II, his mother, Grace Beaudet and his brother, Joseph Beaudet.

He is survived by his wife, Deborah and their beloved dog, Gracie; his four children, Paul Aylward, Phillip Aylward, Stephan Aylward and favorite(!) daughter, Rayna (Charles) Clarke; four grandchildren, Melissa Aylward and Talia, Charles Jr. and Giada Clarke. And many other family members who could make up a village, including six younger sisters,
Ann Marie (Larry) Bolin, Roni Jean Eaton, Evelyn Bardin, Martha Beaudet, Robin Valentine, Beth Beaudet and many, many dear friends.

He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and lived there until he was 55 years old when his wife "tricked" him into moving to her hometown of Webster, NY. He remained a loyal Bostonian with his Boston accent and boy, could he wear a hat. Even in his childhood he was a lover of music and nature. He sang in the church choir and was invited to join the Metropolitan Mens' Chorus as a teenager and toured New England with them. He loved all kinds of music; including the blues, DooWop, jazz, classical and opera. He was a proud Boy Scout and took his first camping trip at age 11 in the winter in the White Mountains. He loved being in the woods and hiking the mountains, especially in Vermont. He and his wife stayed at a cottage in the Northeast Kingdom on their honeymoon in 1987 and went back every summer, and his daughter and her family joined them for several summers; all of which created wonderful memories. Hank enjoyed fishing though most of his time was spent communing with nature and the universe as he called it and not actually catching many fish. He was a connoisseur of all things coffee, cigars and pipe tobacco, and made some great friends at the smoke shop.

He was a traveler starting when he joined the Air Force at 17.5 years old when he was stationed in Charleston, South Carolina; Miles City, Montana and Iceland. He and his wife connected especially through their love of traveling. Hank worked at a chemical plant for 27 years where he was union president for 18 of them. This matched his spirit as a fighter and a scrapper and he was never afraid to give his opinion or let you know how he wanted something done. This fighting spirit served him well in the last 10 years of his life when he had one medical issue after another, significantly vascular dementia and then 5 years ago, cancer at the base of his tongue. He accepted all these issues with grace and put his energy into staying alive and not fighting the reality of his situation.

When his cancer returned in November, he continued to live each day and was grateful for the life he had lived. He continued to have a "presence" and folks often remembered him even after meeting him only once.
Three things that never left him despite all his ailments were his 47 years of sobriety, his great hugs and his wit.
Often when saying goodbye, he would say something he said he stole from his French Canadian stepfather; "If I don't see you again, Hello!"

Stay tuned for the slide show!

Hank's Memorial Mass with be Saturday, March 26, 2022 at 10AM at St. Rita's Catholic Church, 1008 Maple Drive, Webster, NY 14580. Friends and family may join together at the funeral home, New Comer Cremations and Funerals, 6 eMpire Blvd., Rochester, NY 14609 afterwards on Saturday, March 26, 2022 from 1-4PM; where a Military Honors will take place at 2PM; followed by sharing stories about Hank. All will be welcome to share their stories of Hank at this time.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to URMC Hospice, 2180 Empire Blvd., Webster, NY 14580 OR America's VetDogs, 371 East Jericho Turnpike, Smithtown, NY 11787 in Hank's memory.