Fred’s Sister,Barb (“Painter Barb”) Submits

Obituary For Fred D. Bodin

(July 28,1950 -August 28, 2015)

A wise man once said, to be a good friend there are two qualities needed; to be interesting and to be interested.

Fred Bodin had both these qualities. He was interesting, having created and lived the life he wanted as an entrepreneur and artist. And he was interested, having a deep appreciation for all things in life including his community, the persons in his community, his family and his friends.

Fred, age 65, was born in New York City on July 28, 1950 and grew up in Massapequa Park on Long Island with his parents and little sister. It was there at the age of 13 that Fred started his professional photographic career. He took pictures off the TV of The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show and sold the prints to desperate teens at school. He made a small fortune!

His career continued from there as a photographer for his high school’s newspaper. While attending Alfred G. Berner High School he also did freelance photography for The Massapequa Post. All of Fred’s early creative endeavors earned him a full scholarship to Syracuse University and subsequently a degree in photojournalism, 1972.

After graduating, he settled in Boston developing a freelance photography business and then capturing a rare opportunity to intern at the Museum of Fine Art’s Department of Photography. It was at the MFA that he was able to learn fine artistic skills of darkroom work enabling him to print museum quality images of such masters as Ansel Adams and Jerry Uelsman. He used these skills to aid him in becoming a very successful freelance photographer in the Boston area. His expertise in photographic technique was highly sought after by many major photographers. Over the years his clients included Yankee Magazine, Houghton Mifflin, Little, Brown Inc. and Stock Boston.

Fred first came to the Gloucester area in the early 1980s. He came to focus on writing a book about freelance photography and to explore the possibilities in a place where he felt a tremendous connection. During his time in Gloucester, he made many friends and became active in various artistic associations. He fell in love with Cape Ann’s history, culture and community. After publishing two books, he began teaching part-time at Essex Community College. He also showed and sold his work in a Rocky Neck cooperative gallery. A short time later, he ran his own gallery on Bearskin Neck in Rockport.

His discovery and purchase of a collection of historical glass negatives (late 19th and early 20th century) by the late Alice Curtis led to a new adventure in Fred’s life. The new historic photographs allowed him to blend his love of Gloucester with his mastery of photographic printing. He opened a new gallery, Bodin Historic Photo and Fine Arts, on Main Street in Gloucester. The Gallery remained an icon on Main Street for 30 years.

It’s difficult to explain Fred’s deep impact on the business and cultural life in Gloucester. He was a regular contributor to the Good Morning Gloucester blog, an endeavor to which he dedicated himself. He was involved in many civic and cultural groups. He promoted businesses and participated in every phase of the development of Main Street as it is today. In February of 2015, he was chosen to be part of a delegation that traveled to the State House to receive the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Commonwealth Award for “Creative Community”.

Personally, Fred loved good times with friends and family. He enjoyed cooking, sailing, fishing and gardening. He was once known as Cape Ann’s “Tomato King”. He loved hiking and biking, and more recently started rowing with the Gloucester Gig Rowers. There weren’t too many things that didn’t capture his interest and imagination.  Fred Bodin was, indeed, a good friend!

Fred fought an amazing fight against cancer. He kept a journal of the ups and downs of the last year and a half of his life on his Facebook page, Bodin Historic Photo. No one could have captured the essence of this life experience with more dignity and a touch of humor. He was inspirational in his attitude and perseverance.

Fred passed away the morning of August 28th, 2015 with his partner, Janet Crary by his side. She was his faithful caregiver during his final months.

He is survived by his longtime love, Janet Crary, and is fondly remembered by her parents, Marilyn and David Crary, and family.

He is also survived by his loving sister, Barbara Bodin (aka, Painter Barb), and her son Kristian Seney, both of Vineyard Haven, MA as well as many cousins. He is predeceased by his brother-in-law and good friend, Robert Doss who lost his battle to cancer last September. He is also predeceased by his loving parents, Fred A. Bodin and Virginia Bodin.

Memorial services will be private and at a later date. Visiting hours will be at the Greely Funeral Home, 212 Washington Street, Gloucester on Wednesday, September 2nd from 4pm to 7pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Gloucester Gig Rowers’ new boat fund, c/o Maritime Gloucester, 2300 Harbor Loop, Gloucester, MA 01930.