Annemarie Platt

Annemarie (Katzmann) Platt, 85, known as "The Teddy Bear Lady" to many, passed away at her home Saturday morning, May 18, 2019. She was born June 3, 1933 in Eisenach, Tringen, Germany, to the late Ludwig and Wilma Fuhr. She met my dad, Robert S. Platt, after the Korean War and were married over 50 years until my father's own passing in 2014. Mom and I moved over 20 times in the 32 years my father served in the U.S. Air Force, before mom and dad finally settled in the Berlin/Gorham area for retirement. While my father was stationed in Germany, my mom served as a media executive in an advertising firm for several large multinationals including Ferrero (maker of Tic Tac and Kinder Chocolate) and Haribo (maker of gummi candies). Here in NH, mom served as a Berlin School Board Member from 1988-1993, then a board member and Treasurer of the North Country Education Services Board from 1991-2016. But I think the work for which she received the most satisfaction was in creating, modifying and distributing Teddy Bears, a program she started over 20 years ago. Begun for Berlin Police to give a bear to children in traumatic situations, mom later expanded the program at the Androscoggin Valley Hospital (AVH) for anyone who could use a little bit of love. She served as a board member and volunteer for the AVH Auxilliary for two decades as a huge supporter of healthcare services for the people of the Berlin/Gorham area. I want to express my sincere gratitude to the staff of North Country Angel's, LLC. You were so much more than my mom's caregivers in her last years. You were her friends. You allowed my mom to remain in her own home and live her last years with dignity. Mom, your no-nonsense and ethical personality earned you both respect and friendship. You were loved and you will be missed. Now you are free from pain, and are together again with dad. Annemarie is survived by her son Robert T. Platt and wife Trinidad Saldana Platt; a brother Hanskarl Katzmann of Germany; and nieces and nephews. Family and friends are invited to call at the Bryant Funeral Home, 1 Promenade Street, Gorham on Friday, 24 May 2019, from 9:00AM to 11:00AM, followed by a service at 11:00 AM. A graveside service will be held the following Tuesday, 28 May 2019, at noon at the New Hampshire State Veterans' Cemetery, 110 Daniel Webster Highway, Boscawen, NH, where Annemarie will be laid to rest beside her husband Robert. Donations in Annemarie's memory may be made to the Teddy Bear program at Androscoggin Valley Hospital.