Obituary of Jeffrey Hutton

Jeffrey Gallison Hutton, 72, died August 12th 2019. He is survived by his brother Edward “Ted” and sister-in-law Georgie Hutton, of Vero Beach, FL and their children Scott and Anne;; and his sister Heidi Hutton of Duxbury, MA and her children Alex and Elizabeth Brandon. Jeff was the son of Edward “Bud” Hutton and Elizabeth “Betty”, née Gallison.

Jeff grew up in Duxbury MA, and was a student at the Riverview School, in East Sandwich, MA for students with learning challenges such as autism, which Jeff had. After finishing his schooling, he remained at Riverview and lived at Cheever House with three other former students, Herby Dower, Roger Morgan, and Charlie Cheever, as well as staff member Tom Donohue. He was a valued member of the kitchen staff for 55 years, where he was disciplined and dependable, known for his warm greeting and careful attention to everyone he met.

Jeff was kind and gentle. He loved the world and approached everyone with an open heart. He never forgot anyone's name, and often greeted people with the exact date on which he had last seen them, even if fifty years had passed. He also had a talented mind: given any year, he could tell you on what day of the week any date would fall. He loved his Teddy bears, the Boston Red Sox, walking, a glass of red wine in the evening and a good cigar on vacation. He also loved looking out over Duxbury Bay, where he would comment on subtle changes of the tide or wind direction, and name which boats were in the water at that moment. He was an excellent swimmer, and was known to swim in the Bay nearly every day when at home, even as early as April and as late as October. 

He was swimming in the Bay when he died, doing what he loved most.

A celebration of Jeff’s life for all of his family and friends will be held at the Riverview School, East Sandwich MA, on August 28, 2019 at 3 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Riverview School, 551 Rte. 6A, E. Sandwich, MA 02537.