Christopher “Kit” Hayden, 78, died at his home in Newcastle on March 14 following a prolonged
fight with cancer.

Kit was born on December 8, 1938 in New York City, NY, and attended Noble and Greenough School (’56) in Dedham, MA where he was active in sports and theatre. He earned an AB in Engineering Physics from Harvard (’60), and then enlisted in the Army where he studied Hungarian at the language school and was subsequently posted to Bavaria as a cryptographer. Following his military service, he earned MS and PhD (’68) degrees in Meteorology from the University of Michigan. While in Ann Arbor, he married Judith Flowers, with whom he raised three children. Prior to moving to Newcastle in 1996, Kit lived in Oxen Hill, MD and Madison, WI where he worked as a research scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration designing satellite instrumentation and software for weather forecast modeling.

As a child, Kit spent his summers in South Bristol. In retirement, he traveled extensively and greatly enjoyed experiencing life by any mode of transportation without a motor – be it bicycle, sailboat, canoe, or foot.

Many in Lincoln County were drawn to his sardonic wit and intellect as co-host of Wuzzup, a local news and human interest show on LCTV. He also offered his off-beat and often contrarian commentary as a regular contributor to the Lincoln County Weekly, and later as a blogger on Village Soup under the byline Loose Canon. An actor from youth, his first Shakespearean performance was personally commended by his headmaster, a story that never failed to bring tears to his eyes. He was a regular on many stages in Lincoln County, playing roles as diverse as Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady to Harold in The Fully Monty. He was also a longtime member and board member of St. Cecelia Chamber Choir, as well as a board member of the Great Salt Bay Sanitary District. Kit was a scientist, observer, and intellectual, yet he was also a philosopher, poet, and spiritual-seeker, who drew inspiration from the fictional – Holden Caulfield, Atticus Finch, and Willy Loman – and the real – Stephen Batchelor, Thomas Merton, T.S. Eliot, and the Buddha.

Over the course of his illness, Kit was surrounded by his devoted family: his son Warren of Madison, WI; his son Ian and daughter-in-law Nicole from Cary, NC; his grandchildren Chandler and Fletcher; his daughter Alison and fiancée Tim Dougherty from Kinnelon, NJ; his sister Lorna Power from New York City; and his sister Clare White and brother-in-law Steve from Holden, MA. Kit was also greatly supported by his many friends in the community, as well as his dedicated caregivers, all of whom contributed immeasurably to his peaceful passing.

At Kit’s request, there will be no formal memorial service; however, were there to be one, excerpts from T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets would be read, including this: “I said to my soul, be still, and let the dark come upon you which shall be the darkness of God. As, in a theatre, the lights are extinguished, for the scene to be changed.”

Arrangements are under the direction and care of the Strong-Hancock Funeral Home, 612 Main Street, Damariscotta, ME 04543. Condolences, and messages for his family, may be expressed by visiting: www.StrongHancock.com.

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