Roger T. LaBranche, 58, of Clearwater, FL passed away Friday morning, March 21, 2008 at Bay Pines VA Health Care System. Born in Laconia, NH, he was raised in Pinellas County. He was a graduate of Largo High School and became a Master Carpenter. He owned his own business and did a lot of work developing Clearwater Beach. He was an US Army veteran of the Vietnam War earning the rank of Specialist 4. He was awarded the Viet Nam Service Medal, Viet Nam Campaign Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #10304, Clearwater. Survivors include his daughter, Kati Lanfranchi and son, Roger Lanfranchi, both of Tarpon Springs, FL; and two brothers, John of Seminole, FL & Leo of Clermont, FL.
Share this Tribute
Let the family know you
care by sharing this tributes.
Roger LaBranche
Veterans Funeral Care Roger LaBranche
Leave a condolence
First, I Love you and Miss You so much!!!
You taught me how to hammer a nail into wood, and how to grow a garden.. I never did get your green thumb, but I am a good carpenter. The BEST thing I got from you was your heart!! Dad, you had “A Heart Of Gold!” That’s why you have SO many friends and people who cared so deeply about you!
Often in our thoughts, always in our hearts.
To a GREAT FRIEND. We will miss You. Will and Charlie
Love in his heart for everyone. Always willing to help. truely a good friend and a great American.
Love in his heart for everyone. Always willing to help. truely a good friend and a great American.
I have many fond memories of business and friendship. Thinking about the times we worked on different projects brings makes me smile and my heart warm. I specifically remember visiting with Roger Dodger at the original frenchy’s on opening night. Roger was proud of his work there and he should have been. I never go there without thinking of him. I will be out of town on Thursday and unable to share the celebration of the life of a good fried with all of you who can be there . I will, howevber take a moment that day to pause and give thanks to God for then gift of knowing Roger. My best to all of you and his special family.
We ask our Lord to give the family
comfort at this time of loss. And
Blessing from above with the help
that they may need at this time.
We pray that Roger knew the Lord
Jesus Christ as his saviour and is
with him NOW in Heaven. God is
a Great and Loving God. We only
have to love Him. HE LOVES US.
We hardly knew Roger,but saw
goodness in him. We know there
are friends and family who will
miss him. Also ,we thank God
that Roger served our country
well and we are thankful to all
who serve to protect us from
danger. Our VETERANS are why
we still have FREEDOM, and we
again says THANKS for their
part in preserving our HERITAGE.
Although I hadn’t seen Roger in over 40 years I have some great memories of our times in high school. He was a good friend and funny too. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.
My ex-husband was one of a kind. Truly. Those who knew him know that the mold was broke when he was born! He never turned down ANYONE who needed a helping hand. He was an amazing carpenter and great botanist. He was funny as hell, but you knew never to cross him, then you would see his ornery side. He was quite a character. I will never forget him and will always keep him in my thoughts and prayers.
Love,
Miss Mars
We will miss you.
nancy and i will always miss you. you are a true gentleman and we thank you for your friendship. you had more friends than you ever realized.
our prayers go out to your family.
see you later, i’m sure.
oh my!
jimmie
The BROTHER I never had !!!!
Carollynn and I thank you for being our match maker, but most of all we thank you for being our friend. We will miss you and so will Dusty the NC hounddog that you loved!
Katie,
Roger Dodger is on my list of very special people who has influenced my life. I had always marveled that he never complained of anything, nor said an unkind word about anyone. He was always there for his friends and never turned anyone down and was always interested not in his own welfare but in the other persons. He loved life, loved people, and lived life to the fullest without greed or malace. He was witty, funny and had a way of mocking life without offence. Katie, we loved your DAD and will miss him as he was so much a part of our lives. I know he loved God too, as he was so proud to tell me he went to church on Sunday with his mom. He was also a pallbearer at my own mother’s furneral, which makes him very special to me. Our love and prayers go out to you. Love,Carollynn and RJ.
The following members of the V.F.W. Post 9272 Honor Guard located in Seminole, FL were honored to be part of the memorial service to honor your loved one”s service to our country:
Bud Burket – Captain
Dayle Stevens – Chaplain
Fred Mai – Rifleman
Jim Sills – Rifleman
Vern Covell – Rifleman
Rich Hollenstein – Rifleman
Belinda Potter – Bugler
We wish to extend our sincere sympathy and thank you for your generous donation to our Post. This donation will help us to further our efforts in giving each veteran the honors they deserve.
May Roger rest in peace.
the years have gone by but I often thought of you. Say hi to Frank when you both meet in a better place. your friend berniedenton
Borrowing lyrics from Alan Jackson Roger Dodger, I first heard this song the same sad day I learned of your sad passing.Honored to know you Rog!
Born the middle son of a small town southern man. Like his daddy’s daddy before Him working on the land.
He fell in love with a small town girl married and settled down. Then came one pretty daughter and later a talented son. Little words of love and understanding for this small town southern man. Calloused hands told the story of this small town Southern man.Like his daddy,years wore out his body.Made it hard just to walk and stand.You can break the back but you can’t break the spirit of a small town southern man. He bowed his head to Jesus,and He stood for Uncle Sam, Only loved one woman,Proud of what He had, He said his greatest contribution is the ones He’ll leave behind. Death came calling for this small town southern man, He said “It’s alright cause I see angels and they got me by the hand. Don’t you cry and don’t you worry I am Blessed and I know I am. Cause God has a place in Heaven for a small town southern man. Over and Out Roger! Give my love to all the Clearwater Beach boys who will always be remembered and thought of fondly, they lived their lives like no tomorrow. All of them left behind beautiful children and many many friends who loved them. Never to be forgotten! The boys of Clearwater Beach- Jimmy Tracy, Tommy Durkin, Richie Durkin! Roger LaBranche God Bless, Miss Jane, Little Tommy Durkin
Roger and I grew up together on Melody Lane, Largo-we had a ball growing up together, he was a great friend to both me and my brother Don. The days and nights we spent together in our tree houses and forts will always be some of the best memories from our youth. To your family, keep his memory alive, he had life long friends who thought the world of him and will miss him.
To my favorite Veteran, I can still hear you laughing over “The Far Side” cartoons. I often think of you, and I know you have found your tropical paradise. I salute you.