'A proud, hardworking Vermonter'
Woodstock woman's tragic, violent death leaves friends reeling
Toolbox
BY Cristina Kumka Staff Writer - Published: July 4, 2009
WOODSTOCK — Frail and visibly sad, Lawrence Woodward stared outside Friday afternoon, the front door of his quaint home wide open and welcoming.
He sat in a recliner with a bag of potato chips in between his legs, rocking gently back and forth.
"I miss her terribly," Woodward said.
It was the only thing the elder Woodward felt comfortable saying as police continued to search for evidence in the Wednesday killing of his sister-in-law, companion, neighbor and friend, Raynetta Woodward, 79, of 703 Curtis Hollow Road.
His watery eyes focused on a hill above the property where he and Raynetta lived yards apart for most of their lives.
Nearly every day Raynetta would walk down the steep hill hauling water from the well for lack of indoor plumbing in her mobile home.
They lived separately but depended on each other — she would cook and clean and he would accompany her on her walks to the store for necessities.
They were bonded by generations of family history.
That all changed a few days ago when, police say, Raynetta — a mother, former longtime employee of the old Cole Farm Restaurant and private, yet friendly, community member — was bludgeoned to death in her home Wednesday afternoon.
Police arrested transient Charles "Punky" Haynes, 51, shortly after they discovered Woodward's body and named him a "person of interest" in the death.
Haynes was not brought up on charges related to the death but was arraigned Thursday on felony charges for multiple burglaries reported in Bridgewater in June.
As of late Friday, Haynes was being in Springfield prison for lack of $50,000 bail.
The family and friends of Woodward said they are left wondering who killed their dear friend. They all said they couldn't even begin to imagine why someone would.
"She was a proud, hardworking Vermonter … proud of what she had, her kids," said niece Gloria Martin.
"Some people you could understand how this could happen," she said. "They have enemies, druggies, but to happen to her … unimaginable."
Raynetta was described by those close to her as someone loved by all, hardworking and "spunky."
They said she was short in stature but had a big enough heart to make up for it.
Born Raynetta Clogston in Claremont, N.H., in 1930, she married Bridgewater native Wallace Woodward at age 21. They lived in the Curtis Hollow Road home together up until Wallace's death in 1997.
Together they had six sons and a daughter, who live throughout Vermont.
Raynetta enjoyed time with her five grandchildren up until her death, friends said. She was almost completely deaf, but according to Martin and others, it didn't let it stop her from living.
She walked everywhere, never had a driver's license and was the most loyal employee Joyce Breault said she had in her 28 years owning the Cole Farm Restaurant.
Raynetta was a dishwasher at the restaurant for about 20 years.
"She felt she had to be there (at work) no matter what," Breault said.
Breault spoke of a time when Raynetta fell off her bike and broke her wrist but insisted on washing dishes anyway.
"She was in the dish sink washing pots with one elbow and one hand," she said. "She refused to go home."
Co-worker Gerald Breault said Raynetta's death didn't seem real.
"I never expected to not see her around," he said.
Business owners Shari Goudreau and Webster Withington said Raynetta always carried what money she had in a fanny pack, wrapped around her waist.
She even slept with it, according to Withington.
She was "scrappy," strong-willed and independent and if someone approached her aggressively, Goudreau said she wouldn't be surprised if she didn't give in to that person's demands. Goudreau said she hoped that the person responsible for the burglaries in town wasn't the same person now responsible for a death.
"One day someone is going to have to explain to me how the world works cause I don't know how it ends up with someone dead," she said.
Late Friday afternoon, family members gathered outside Lawrence's home.
Behind them, in the cordoned-off yard beside Raynetta's home, fresh laundry was left hanging, rain-soaked and motionless.
Anyone with information on the death of Raynetta Woodward is asked to call state police at 234-9933. Also as part of the investigation, police are looking to speak with anyone who may have seen or had contact with Charles "Punky" Haynes during the day Wednesday.
cristina.kumka@rutlandherald.com
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