Eliot- Robert J. "Bear" Fontaine Jr, 74, of Bolt Hill Road in Eliot died peacefully on October 4, 2024 at Portsmouth Regional Hospital surrounded by his loving family following a short period of declining health.

Bob was born in Dover, New Hampshire on November 30, 1949 a son of the late Robert Sr and Jeannette (Marcoux) Fontaine. He attended schools in South Berwick graduating from Marshwood High School with the class of 1968. Following high school he attended Maine Maritime Academy in Castine prior to beginning a forty-four year career with Pepsi Cola, retiring in 2015.

In 1971 he married his loving wife of fifty-three years Nancy (Adams) Fontaine and together they made their home and raised a family in Eliot.

"Bear" made a lasting impact on the community, and that impact is evident in the thousands of girls he coached, and the hundreds of youth, middle school and high school football and basketball games that he has officiated over almost a half century of service to the youth of our two towns.

He was the Marshwood Girls Varsity Softball coach for eleven years and was the girls basketball coach at Marshwood Jr High/Marshwood Middle School for twenty seven years. He was a high school JV and Varsity-level basketball official/referee for forty three  years, starting in 1981.  While he was no longer actively officiating, he was still a member-in-good-standing of IAABO and served on their annual tournament committee, helping to select and recognize the top male and female basketball players in the regional tournaments for all 5 classes.

Bob was a current Varsity-level football official in the state of Maine, and had been for thirty years, starting in 1994.  In addition to the many regular season football games he has officiated he has been selected on several occasions as a referee for state championship football games and the Maine Lobster Bowl, both being very prestigious and sought-after recognitions.

He addition to high school games he was a referee for youth football leagues in the area, often refereeing as many as 8-10 football games over a single weekend, helping to instill his love and knowledge of the game of football in the hearts of youth players in our community.  He could often be heard on the field instructing players during the game instead of just enforcing the rules.

Bob loved the camaraderie of all the football and basketball officials he worked with each season.  He thoroughly enjoyed that part of athletics and made many great friends.

The Marshwood Girls Basketball Booster Club created a scholarship in his honor, in recognition of his years of service to the girls basketball program…the "Fontaine-Young Girls' Basketball Scholarship" (named in conjunction with his long-time coaching partner, Rick Young).

Over the years, the one athletic accomplishment that stands out as the single biggest example of the impact he has had on our community is in the thirty seven years that he ran the Marshwood Girls Youth Basketball Program.  This program consisted of 6-10 rec teams that practiced and played against each other each week during the winter months, and 1-3 travel teams each winter that competed against neighboring towns in games and competitive tournaments.  Bear ran that program for thirty seven years.    The sheer number of hours that he spent in a gymnasium each winter over the thirty seven years running the program are unfathomable, and the number of girls who came through his program is in the thousands.  From the end of October until the end of March each winter, Bear would spend every weekend in a local gym running or overseeing practices, refereeing youth games, coordinating teams, or organizing tournaments for the various travel teams that were selected from his rec league.  His primary focus was to TEACH the game, and to teach it the correct way.  Wins and losses were secondary to developing teams who competed fairly, treated opposing teams and referees with respect, and represented our two towns positively.  Bears inpact with girls he coached over the years can be easily seen and heard in the interactions he had with them as adults.  To them, he will forever be "Coach Bear".

The true example of his impact on our community was his recent selection and induction into the inaugural class of the Marshwood Hall of Fame and Excellence.

Although he had many years of athletic accomplishments and experience they only paled by comparison to the dedication and love he had for his family. His wife Nancy, his girls and their families  were the center of his life. He loved to help out , running countless errands for them. He adored going to his kids and grandkids sporting events, and looked forward each year to their family visit all together at Lake Ossipee.   He especially loved when the whole family would make trips to Disney World together and eagerly anticipated the next trip.  He loved holidays with his family, especially Halloween, as he was well known for giving out his huge handfuls of candy.

Bob is survived by his loving family; his wife Nancy, daughters; Stephanie and her husband Jeff Tarr, Kristine and her husband Ken Trulock, and Shelby Cormier and her fiancée Steve Simpson, grandchildren whom he adored, Hailey, Taylor and Ryan Tarr, Paiden and Camryn Trulock and Brooklyn and Logan Cormier, siblings, Albert (Bucky) Fontaine and his wife Estelle, Peter Fontaine and his wife Roberta, Dennis Fontaine, and Lynn Rousselle, good friends Alan (Robie) Robertshaw and Lee Petrie as well as many nieces, nephews and cousins.  He was predeceased by his parents, a brother John Fontaine and a son in law Peter Cormier.

Friends are invited to visit with the Fontaine family on Sunday October 13 from 4-8pm in the JS Pelkey and Son Funeral Home 125 Old Post Road Kittery Maine 03904. Private services will be held at a later time. In lieu of flowers donations may be made in his memory to the " Fontaine/Young Girls Basketball Scholarship"- donations may be mailed to Marshwood High School 260 Dow Highway South Berwick Maine 03908.