Local News
Gerard “Jerry” Boucher and his wife, Kathleen “Kit” Boucher, fell through the ice Feb. 14 while walking their dog.
Jerry Boucher, Kit Boucher, Katy Boucher, and Mary Lawson. Katy Boucher
February 20, 2026 | 1:49 PM
1 minute to read
Authorities have recovered the body of an Eastham man nearly a week after he and his wife fell through the ice at First Encounter Beach while walking their dog.
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Gerard “Jerry” Boucher, 72, was found around 9:30 a.m. Friday as members of the Barnstable County Fire Department Technical Rescue Team searched a marshy area about half a mile northeast of the Bee’s River parking lot, Eastham police and fire officials said.
Friday’s discovery was several days in the making; emergency crews had returned to Bee’s River several times to search for Boucher since he and his wife, 71-year-old Kathleen “Kit” Boucher, fell through the ice the morning of Feb. 14.
After receiving a report of a distressed, wet dog on the loose in the parking lot, first responders arrived to find Kit Boucher screaming for help about 30 feet from shore. Two police officers fell through the ice trying to reach Kit Boucher but were unable to save her; divers found her body later that morning.
A mid-morning low tide and improved ice conditions helped officials continue their search for Jerry Boucher Friday, Eastham police and fire officials said.
“The Eastham Police and Fire Departments continue to express our sincere condolences to the family and friends of the victims,” the departments said in a statement. “We would also like to thank our regional partners for their hard work and commitment to locating Mr. Boucher and bring[ing] closure to this tragic incident.”
An obituary for the couple described the Bouchers as “lifelong best friends” who met in a high school biology class in the 1970s, married several years later, and built a life dedicated to their children, grandchildren, and community.
“Kit and Jerry were, simply, best friends,” the obituary reads. “In the end they were together, just as they had been since they were teenagers.”
Abby Patkin is a general assignment news reporter whose work touches on public transit, crime, health, and everything in between.
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