Stewart C Cummings

Dover Stewart Cummings, 89, of 56 Piscataqua Road, died on Sunday, June 29th, 2025, surrounded by the love of family and friends. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered for his kindness, sense-of humor, ingenuity, and love for his family and friends. Born on New Year’s Eve in 1935 to Ruth and Phillip Cummings in Malden, Massachusetts, Stewart enjoyed a happy, adventurous childhood with his sister, Janet. He biked the streets of Boston and out onto Cape Cod, played the rope trick on unsuspecting motorists in Malden, and competed in school and church basketball leagues, even once playing on the famed parquet floor of the old Boston Garden. He spent summers on Martha’s Vineyard helping his Aunt Gert, where his love of the coast first took root. Stewart graduated from Malden High School in 1953. He entered the Navy, having started the Naval Reserve while still in high school, and served 4 years including as a plankowner (a member of the commissioning crew) on the USS Sailfish (SSR-572), a radar picket submarine. His life changed forever when he met his soulmate and life partner, Muriel Zinck, in 1956, who was working at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard at the time. Stewart and Muriel were married in 1958 and built a joyful life together in Dover, New Hampshire and Kittery Point, Maine. Stewart was an engineer, graduating from Wentworth Institute in 1955, and had a life-long fascination with how things worked. He worked for over 40 years at Davidson Rubber and its successor companies, helping build the business through multiple ownership changes, serving as a draftsman, project engineer and all-around problem solver. He had many friends at work for whom he would do anything and who would do the same for him. He enjoyed the final chapter of his career at Rokon in Rochester. Stewart and Muriel raised three sons whom they supported in every endeavor. Stewart assured they got a great education and provided an amazing role model for them in how to be a father and husband. “Grampa Stew” was adored by his eight grandchildren. He loved spending time with them building things, fixing things or simply supporting whatever new thing they were into. He attended many a practice, game, performance, graduation and countless other events, always in loving support of his kids and their families. He was always eager to share his culinary talents, putting on lobster bakes and happily helping his grandchildren with the making of pies, cookies, cakes, and Maine blueberry jam. Stewart and Muriel were early enthusiasts of modern design and architecture. They shared a keen aesthetic and built two homes, one with their own hands on Gerrish Island, Maine. Stewart loved jazz, blaring Cuban music, and the blues whenever he had the chance. He was an old-school gentleman who made quick friends wherever he went, never minded holding his wife’s pocketbook while they shopped, happily offering fashion advice, and could climb a sailboat mast in the middle of the ocean to fix rigging even with a lacerated hand. Until several weeks ago, there were very few people you could count on more if you needed help with an engine that wouldn’t start or a stubborn pickle jar that wouldn’t open. Stewart had a lifelong love of the sea. He sailed on the sloop Windspirit, swam, and kayaked extensively off the Maine coast. Late in life, he took up rowing alongside his grandchildren and placed second in his age group at the World Indoor Rowing Championships in 2016. He also went undefeated in more than a decade of January Cummings family rowing challenges. A lifelong environmentalist, he took quiet pride in sustainable living. Together with his wife and neighbors, he helped found Community Action for Sensible Roadways, an organization dedicated to protecting New Hampshire’s Great Bay. Later in life, Stewart returned to Martha’s Vineyard, where he had spent many joyful childhood summers, sharing the island’s beauty with his sons, Derek and Neil, their families and his cherished friend Sylvia ‘Sybbie’ Warren, whom he adored. Stewart loved his weekly dinners with his extended family, Sylvia, Jan and Ronald Furbush. These were his support group, friend group and pals later in life. Stewart is survived by his three sons and their families: Dana and Jennifer Cummings of Pittsburgh, PA; Neil and Tracy Cummings of St. Joseph’s, Michigan; and Derek and Evangeline Cummings of Baltimore, Maryland. He is also survived by eight grandchildren; Luke, Andrew, Ben, Sarah, Lily, Mia, Thomas and Nicholas; his sister, Janet Cassidy of Medfield, MA; sisters-in-law Sylvia Warren and Janet Furbush; brother-in-law Ronald Furbush and nephews, Joel and David Cassidy. He was predeceased by his parents and his wife, Muriel Eleanor Cummings. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Stewart’s honor can be made to Grace Baptist Church of Rochester (www.gracebaptistchurch-nh.com) or the Cape Ann Rowing Club (www.capeannrowingclub.com). Stewart Chatto Cummings

Stewart C Cummings

December 31, 1935 - June 29, 2025