Born June 6, 1926 in Biddeford, Maine, Fred’s first years in Old Orchard Beach were affected by the Great Depression and the loss of his mother, Marie Morrison Arno, when he was 11. Shortly after, Fred and his brother, Elmer, went to live at an orphanage in Saco, the Sweetser Home for Boys.
Fred entered high school at Thornton Academy in 1941 and quickly distinguished himself in academics and athletics. His yearbook described him as “Everyone’s Best Pal.” He was class president for three years while earning four varsity letters including baseball, basketball and track. In his sophomore football season against heavily favored Portland High, Fred threw for five touchdowns then ran 73 yards for a school record sixth touchdown. Thornton won the game, 40-0. In 2008, he was inducted into Thornton Academy’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
Before his senior year in 1944, Fred enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. His service included tours of China and the Phillipines. After boot camp at Camp Lejeune, he was part of the amphibious landing and ground assault on Iwo Jima during some of the fiercest, bloodiest fighting of the war. He rarely spoke of it, preferring to say, “War is hell and we should never have them.” From a ship just offshore, he could see the flag raising on Mt. Suribachi and experienced the moment of the famous photograph that became an immortal Marine symbol.
He returned to civilian life to complete his senior year and graduated from Thornton Academy in 1947. That August, he married the love of his life, Hazel Sears, whom he’d known since junior high.
Together they started a family in his sophomore year at Springfield College. Their daughter Ina Ennis was born in 1948, then Ann Louise in 1950, and not-too-late, Carolyn Marie in 1961.
While Fred was initially encouraged to pursue a career coaching sports, he changed majors; he eventually received both a bachelor’s of science and Mmaster’s degrees in business administration from Springfield College.
Motivated by a growing family, they moved to Beverly, Massachusetts, where Fred quickly found work at the Sylvania manufacturing plant in Salem supervising over 100 men manufacturing light bulbs. From there, he moved upstairs to the Personnel Department and ultimately into Human Resources for Sylvania, and then some of the largest companies in the Northeast including Polaroid, Pitney Bowes, Digital Equipment Corp. and finally, the Internal Revenue Service. These promotions came with moves to Hudson, Massachusetts, and Newtown, Connecticut. Fred spent every summer with his family at their cottage on Thomas Pond in Raymond, Maine, near his ancestral home.
Throughout his working life, Fred was known for his honesty, integrity and generous nature. He took pride in mentoring and helping promote people of all races and persuasions to further their careers, occasionally beyond his own.
Fred retired in 2002. He sold his home in Westford, Massachusetts, and moved with Hazel to live with Carolyn and her family, husband, Monty and granddaughters, Brooke and Beth outside Portland, Oregon. For the several years they were all together, it was an idyllic time, visiting the lakes and rivers surrounding Mount Hood, eating out and relaxing at home. In 2005, Hazel passed away. Hazel and Fred were happily married for 57 years.
In the years since then, Fred continued to enjoy his love of history, museums and historic places. He watched upward of 150 Boston Red Sox games every season and any New England Patriots game televised on the West Coast. Indeed, he always had a knack for knowing by halftime which team would eventually win the game.
In his last few years, Fred stayed at home and was cared for by Carolyn. His illness ultimately took away his memory of the remarkable life he had led. Until the end, he appreciated his family, ice cream, his two dogs, Daisy and Joe, and of course, the Boston Red Sox.
Fred Arno was preceded in death by: his wife, Hazel; mother, Marie; father, Lester; brother, Elmer; and sister, Shirley Arno Yetz.
He is survived by: his daughters, Ina Arno, Ann Moore (husband, Dan Moore), and Carolyn Arno (husband, Monty Orrick); four grandchildren, Angie Hicks, Daren Pennington, Brooke Orrick-Arno and Beth Orrick-Arno; and six beautiful great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Laurel Hill Cemetery Chapel on Friday, August 11 at 1 p.m. followed immediately by full military honors performed by the United States Marine Corps at the burial site.
Anyone wishing to honor Fred Arno’s memory may donate to: Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org) or
Reel American Heroes Foundation (reelamericanheroes.org).
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