Dale Howard Atkins

"Belchertown, Dale Howard Atkins, 70, of Sabin St. died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family on Thursday, January 10, 2013. Born in Northampton, June 23, 1942, he was the son of Howard and Ruth (Wheeler) Atkins. He has lived in the area for many years, as well as on Cape Cod. During his working career, he worked for his father at Atkins Farms in Amherst for a time, as well as establishing his own businesses, including Garden of Eden at Atkins, Neetu's Toys & Hobby in Belchertown, and India Tea & Spice in Hadley. His accomplishments included designing and building the "Talkie" theater in Northampton, which was later renamed as the "Pleasant Street Theater". While on the cape, he had a jewelry business in Provincetown. He was artistic and also loved to build things with wood, including his Tiki Troll carvings. His last paintings were inspired by photographs taken by the Hubble Telescope. He enjoyed reading, movies, music and writing short stories, and at a young age made cartoon films and hand puppets. He enjoyed working in his vegetable garden, taking walks in the apple orchard and loved visiting the ocean. His travels took him to Europe and India with his wife. He was also a Democrat who enjoyed debating current world events. He will be deeply missed by his wife of 35 years, Pansy (Hannah), along with his 2 children, Christopher and Angela, both of Belchertown. He also leaves his siblings Merrile Atkins of Cincinnati, OH, Celia Ziegler of CA and Daniel Atkins of Springfield, as well his nieces, nephews and in-laws. All services are private and have been entrusted to Beers & Story Belchertown Funeral Home. For those wishing, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to his family at 259 Sabin Street in Belchertown. "