Alice Palmer Hunneman

The eldest child of Hilda Libby Ives and John Emery Palmer, she was born in Portland in 1931, and with the exception of college years and a short period thereafter, she resided in the greater Portland area her entire life. After attending Waynflete School, Bradbury Junior College and Wheelock College, in 1952 she married Philip Gemmer and had three sons, Wheeler, Fred and Chris.

Philip and Alice divorced, but Alice enjoyed a second husband late in life, Dexter Hunneman, of Cape Elizabeth, to whom she was married from 2001 to 2012. Dexter and his children and families welcomed her into their clan, and she especially loved her nearly-annual trips to Stirling, Scotland, where Dexter’s daughter, Mimsie, and her husband, Jamie, and their sons, lived on a sheep farm.

Alice will be remembered for her warm, inviting smile and ability to put others at ease. Her self-effacing nature and sense of humor were her trademarks and recognized by everyone. She was described often as a lovely and kind person who would put others before herself and make them laugh.

When asked what meant the most to her over her nine decades, Alice would say without hesitation “family and helping others.” Though she volunteered at many organizations and served on several boards, her most memorable experience was working with the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) program. In order to advocate on behalf of children who were in difficult, often perilous, living situations, Alice was required to meet parents and children in their homes or foster homes, attend court and make recommendations to judges. She even held one-on-one meetings with inmates in prisons who had done unspeakable things to their children. Much of her time was working with the assistance of the law firm, Pierce Atwood, who presented her with an award for her dedication.

More than anything, though, it was her large extended Palmer / Gemmer family that gave her joy. And she, to them. The entire family will remember her delight at recounting over the years the numerous anecdotes about “old Portland”, growing up on Bowdoin Street, the summer house at Poodle Point, and “Mother and Daddy.” There isn’t a grandnephew or grandniece who won’t laugh at thinking of Alice jerking the gas pedal when driving a station wagon or her unforgettable holiday hot chocolate sauce that hardened so much that it had to be pried from one’s teeth.

Her siblings, all of whom lived in the Portland area, and their children were a constant presence in her life, and she relished the roles of genial sister and Aunt Alice. She was predeceased by both her husbands and a sister, Lou Soule. She is survived by another sister, Susan Jones, and brothers, John Palmer and Fred Palmer and their spouses. Also surviving are her nuclear family, Wheeler Gemmer, and his husband, Mohan Ismail; Fred Gemmer and his wife, Connie; and Chris Gemmer. The lights of her life in the last thirty-five years were her four grandchildren, their spouses and her great grandchildren: Cary and her husband, Craig Blake, and their girls, Fritzie and Clara and boy, Bo; Annie and her husband, Josh Bowe, and their son, Sawyer, and daughter, Lizzie; Louisa and her husband, Eddie Beaulieu, and Fritz Gemmer.

Alice’s family is indebted to the caregivers at Ocean View Legacy Memory Care who took such wonderful care of her. She would invite them almost daily to spend the night on her couch so she could have more time with them and talk about their families.

Alice’s sons would like to invite family and friends to a memorial celebration in her honor on Tuesday, November 1, 2022 at 5:00 on the second floor of DiMillo’s restaurant in Portland.

Arrangements are being handled by Jones, Rich & Barnes Funeral Home, Portland. Please visit www.jones,richandbarnes.com.