Northborough resident reflects on his 97 years, with a smile
By Cathy Cairns Contributing Writer

SUBMITTED Roland Bachand and his late wife, Gertrude, of Northborough share a moment a few years ago.

Northborough - Roland "Rollie" Bachand enjoys the scenic view of the fields out behind his home. He's been enjoying that view for 60 of his 97 years.

Born in Waterbury, Conn., in 1910, Roland's family moved a year later to Worcester, where his father worked building threedecker homes. The family included three boys and one girl.

School was difficult for Roland.

"I could read everything, understand it, but I couldn't spell," he said.

Learning disabilities were not widely understood at the time. Frustrated in school, he left in the ninth grade and went to work with his father. But he didn't like the heights involved in building three-deckers, so he took a job at the Lovell Street Market in Worcester where he delivered groceries. He felt lucky to have the job during the Depression.

"I did everything I could make a dime on," he said.

His jobs included delivering coke (derived from coal) for two dollars a day, and Collier's, a weekly magazine, for 50 cents a night.

Below: Roland Bachand (right) and his younger brother Ray pose in their old-fashioned clothing sometime before 1920. PHOTO/SUBMITTED

When World War II broke out, Roland wanted to enlist, but an old injury disqualified him. An accident at a cousin's farm several years earlier had left Roland's arm badly broken in several places. Because the bones were set improperly, he was never able to fully bend his elbow again.

Roland met Gertrude Hickey when she was 18 and he was 23. They married in 1938, and raised two sons, Arthur and Roland "Bud."

To support his family, Roland took a job delivering for Bond Bread, and started raising turkeys in a lot behind their Worcester three-decker.

"The minute the sun came up, they'd all start squawking," he said, chuckling. "And the people in the three-deckers would squawk to me."

Roland eventually moved the turkeys out of the city to a farm in West Boylston. He would arise at 3 a.m. to deliver bread, take the bus to West Boylston to feed the turkeys, then catch the bus home again.

CATHY CAIRNS Above: Roland Bachand today enjoys the sun in his Church Street home.

"I got up at three in the morning for 30 years," he said.

In 1948, Roland moved his family to a home with 37 acres on Church Street in Northborough.

"I paid $6,000," he said.

He continued to raise turkeys, eventually adding on a large room that became the store where he and Gertrude sold turkeys. When he suffered a heart attack in 1958, he gave up raising turkeys. In 1965, he retired from Bond Bread and became the custodian of Proctor School in Northborough. The kids were wonderful, he said.

"That was the best 10 years of my life," he said.

Longtime Northborough residents will remember the pastoral scene of cows grazing on the Bachand's Church Street property. Roland said he raised steer in the early years, and his son Bud raised dairy cows in the early 1980s. He has always raised vegetables and still does with the help of dedicated home workers who visit with him daily.

"I sold $50 worth of tomatoes. I put them out there with a bucket," he said.

The honor system has worked for 10 years, he said.

Sadly, Gertrude passed away this past August, one day before the couple's 69th wedding anniversary. He said he misses her terribly. But he enjoys spending time with his sons, and is surrounded by family photos, including his granddaughter and two great-grandchildren.

These days, Roland is recording some of his life stories on audiotape. Stories of the turkeys, his life with Gertrude, and the view of the fields behind his home. Wonderful stories worth remembering.