Bertrand R. Vaillancourt, 97, of Hampton, passed away on June 18, 2021. Predeceased by his wife, Patricia, and their infant son, Alan, Bert is survived by his son, Brian, his daughter, Paula, and several grandchildren. Born in Manchester, New Hampshire, Bert lived in Hampton for 58 years and built many lasting relationships.

A Master barber by trade, Bert owned Sportsman’s Barber Shop in Willimantic for many years. The shop was a combination barber shop and retail fishing-hunting supply. Bert loved camping and hiking, and over the years his family climbed 19 mountains, including Mt. Washington. He was also an expert fly fisherman.

Bert had many passions and hobbies, and as he would say, “always got wrapped up in each and every one”. In the 60’s, he took up photography and turned a bathroom into a darkroom, much to his wife’s dismay. He spoke fluent Canadian French and in his retirement years, studied European French at ECSU and UCONN. He loved music and the violin, starting lessons at age ten, and was a violinist in the Willimantic and Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestras.  He often played at Our Lady of Lourdes Church and was the “Fiddler” in the Hampton Community Players’ “Fiddler on the Roof”. A veteran, during WWII and beyond he was a Staff Sargent and Platoon Leader in the 43rd division of the National Guard and became a rifle marksman, target and skeet shooting in the back yard with the ‘guys’ later in life and belonging to many local outdoor shooting clubs. A master storyteller, he was extremely knowledgeable in military aircraft, guns and world history, especially WWI and WWII.