Josephine Hamp Wescott “Jo”
December 2, 1945 ~ July 2, 2026
Born in: Franklin, New Hampshire
Resided in: Topsham, Maine
Josephine Hamp Wescott, affectionately known as “Jo,” passed away peacefully on July 2, 2026, in Topsham, Maine, at the age of 80. Born on December 2, 1945, in Franklin, New Hampshire, Jo was the daughter of Edward H. and Katherine M. (MacKenzie) Hamp.
She grew up in Andover, New Hampshire, where she developed a lifelong love of the outdoors, animals, and the natural beauty that remained central to her life.
Jo graduated from Stoneleigh-Burnham School in Greenfield, Massachusetts, and later from Colby Junior College in New London, New Hampshire. Her adventurous spirit led her to Colorado, where she lived for many years. She worked at Colorado Mountain College in Spring Valley and Colorado Rocky Mountain School in Carbondale before returning to Maine. There, she and her husband, Jim, owned and operated a bed and breakfast in Waterville, while Jo also enjoyed a career at Colby College until her retirement.
Following her retirement, Jo made her home in Belfast, Maine, where she embraced the beauty of the coast and continued to enjoy the simple pleasures that brought her so much happiness.
Jo was predeceased by her husband, James Wescott; her parents, and her brother, Nicholas Hamp. She is survived by her stepchildren, Sarah and Seth Wescott; her nieces, Elizabeth Hamp and her husband, Bill Squires, and Amy Goodwin Hillis; her great-niece, Katherine Squires; and many beloved friends who will miss her deeply.
Jo’s family and friends will remember her as a woman of grace, curiosity, and generosity who found joy in nature, travel, and the people she loved. Her humor and appreciation for life’s beauty will be deeply missed and forever remembered.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to The Highlands staff who cared for Jo in her final years, and CHANS Home Care and Hospice.
A graveside service will be held at Proctor Cemetery in Andover, New Hampshire, in the fall of 2026. Please visit Jo’s memorial page for updated service information.
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We are so sorry for your loss. Jo had a wonderful life. Liz, you took such great care of her these last few years. What a blessing it was to have you. Sending our love, Tammy, Bobby, Declan, Coleman & Nicky Jones
Jo was a fine lady. She was smart, athletic, adventurous, funny, and just gifted with a wonderful personality. She was also tough and she was brave.
Elizabeth, I thank you for your attention to and care for Jo during these last tough years.
Jo was good.
Jo and I met at Stoneleigh in about 1960, attended Colby in New London together and each of us ended up in Boston after graduation. Real jobs didn’t seem to suit us so Jo and her very dearest friend Sally broke loose and went to Vail. I needed very little prodding to eventually join them and what a time it was. Jo was a special friend … she was kind and gentle to my hard edge. I am grateful for her presence in my life and while we drifted apart in geography, we could always pick up where we left off. I still giggle over those silly things that set us off “back then”. Her gift to us all is our memories of such a lovely person.
Jo was my father’s second wife since the 90s. She had a habit of sending greeting cards handwritten with birthday and holiday wishes. She was at my undergraduate graduation and a decade later stayed up talking with my father late into the night after listening to my MA thesis presentation in counseling psychology. I photographed their wedding on the coast of Maine in 1995 and then in 2011 married my husband on their wedding anniversary. My father took a sabbatical from coaching at Colby College to mentor young track athletes in Christchurch, New Zealand. I visited them on the South Island in 1997 where they had kiwis growing outside their kitchen window and drove an old Morris Minor around through the fields of sheep. She survived a mild heart attack just before my brother’s first Olympics in Torino but was well enough to attend in Vancouver where he won gold for the second time, four years later. Dad and Jo came to California for our wedding and after our daughter’s birth to meet their first grandchild. I am grateful for the love she shared with my father and for her presence in my life over the decades. I’m pretty sure she’s been hanging around my garden in the form of a monarch butterfly since her passing.
I was a classmate and suite mate of jo at stoneleigh prospect hill school. I have very fond memories of her and the fun times we had.
Lynn houston
My husband and I were friends with Jo and her late husband, Jim, as well. We knew her in Waterville and helped them when they moved into their 1845 house in Belfast, Maine. We stayed in touch over her years in Belfast, and I occasionally visited Jo after she moved to Topsham. She was a dear friend and I personally had many times I went to Belfast to see her over the years, or she would meet somewhere in between, often with our friend Susan Higgins. She was a very kind soul and had a wonderful knack for decorating as well as gardening. And she loved taking walks. When she was physically unable to walk all the time, it had to be so frustrating for her because she liked getting outside into the fresh air. She w
As a regular at Chases in Belfast and had many friends and acquaintances in Belfast. She was special and we miss her presence now that she is gone. We had some fun and memorable adventures together, and often after I would see her, Jo would call a little bit later to say what a nice time she had had. She was a special friend.