Daniels Hamant played baseball at Thayer Academy and remained a lifelong fan of the game. His family remembers him as an outstanding player.

He served in the Army’s 30th Infantry Division during World War II, landing in Normandy six days after D-Day. He later fought in Holland, the Battle of the Bulge, and the advance to the Elbe.

According to a family recollection, a fellow soldier once fumbled a live grenade. Daniels threw it clear and pulled the soldier to the ground beside him.

After the war, he worked at Raytheon for forty years on microwave and power-tube technology. He was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in 1982 and became a fundraiser and hotline counselor for the Arthritis Foundation. He continued that work until shortly before his death.

The Hamant family had lived in Medfield, Massachusetts, for generations. Francis Hamant arrived from England in 1651 and was among the town’s early settlers.

Susan named the foundation in honor of her father, Daniels Hamant.