LIMERICK—CDR Harry Walter Kinsley, Jr., age 87, passed away on October 30, 2017, at the Gosnell Memorial Hospice, Scarborough, Maine, after a period of declining health.
He was born in Norwalk, Connecticut, on July 10, 1930, the only son of Harry Walter and Alice (Isbell) Kinsley. Harry attended local Norwalk schools, and was a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, Class of 1948, and Yale University, Class of 1952.
After graduation he enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve, and subsequently was ordered to active duty at the Naval Officer Candidate School, Newport, Rhode Island. During his career he was assigned to 10 ships, serving in various capacities, including Officer in Charge of the USS Coolbaugh (DE 217), and the USS Greenwood (DE 679), and Commanding Officer of the USS Terrell County (LST 1157), and the USS Tuscaloosa (LST 1187). His shore assignments included Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Illinois; Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, where he earned an MS with distinction in Economic Analysis and Personnel Management; Plans and Programs Officer for the DX/DXG/DXGN program (which ultimately became the Spruance class destroyer) in the office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C., and the Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, where he completed the Naval Warfare Course, the equivalent of a Master’s degree in International Relations. His last duty station was Washington, D.C., on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations, Department of Naval Education and Training. His years of service spanned the Korean and Vietnam wars. His decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V,” Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, Meritorious Unit Commendation, National Defense Service Medal with Star, Navy Expeditionary Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with nine stars, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal with Device, and the Vietnam Cross of Gallantry--Unit Commendation.
During a stay in Bethesda Naval Hospital he met Navy nurse Mary Kerr Thing, and they married the next year on November 26, 1960, in Tampa, Florida.
Harry served on active duty for 26 years, and upon retirement, relocated with his family to Limerick, Maine, where he spent the rest of his days. He returned to school and attended the University of Southern Maine, earning a bachelor’s equivalent in Accounting. He then embarked on a career as a Business and Tax Consultant, based for many years in an office on Main Street, Limerick. He was very proud of the 15,000 tax returns he prepared for people in Limerick and neighboring towns.
Harry stayed involved and connected with his Yale and Exeter classmates. He served as Class Correspondent for his Exeter Class for nearly forty years.
He served on the MSAD 57 School Board, State School Board Association, several Limerick committees, and was the speaker for many years at the Limerick Memorial Day and Veterans’ Day ceremonies. He was a licensed lay reader in the Episcopal Church, and was also involved in his children’s activities, including Cub and Boy Scouts, and youth sports.
An athlete in his youth, he closely followed college and professional sports, in particular, Yale, and his beloved New York Yankees. He was a Mason, member of the Independent Royal Arch Lodge, No. 2, F. and A.M.
Harry loved games and puzzles, to sing and to read (mostly history). Involved in the Limerick Historical Society from its inception, he served for many years as its historian. In retirement, he became very interested in genealogy, and spent many hours in libraries and cemeteries, tracing his and his wife’s roots. He was very active in genealogical organizations, especially the Mayflower Society, Sons of the American Revolution, Order of the Founders and Patriots, Society of Colonial Wars, and the Piscataqua Pioneers.
He was predeceased by two sisters, Mary Jane (Kinsley) Lole, and Carol (Kinsley) Murchie. Harry is survived by his wife of nearly 57 years, Mary; his children: Margaret and her husband David Johnson of Washington, D.C., Harry III “Hank” and his wife Katie of Cary, North Carolina, John and his wife Beth of Scituate, Massachusetts, and Sarah and her husband John Choi of Cape Elizabeth, Maine; Harry’s sister, Alice (Kinsley) Clark of Hamden, Connecticut, and ten grandchildren: Nathaniel, Mary Charlotte, and Seth Johnson; William Kinsley; John Jr., Louisa, and Amelia Kinsley; and Theodore, Christopher, and Andrew Choi.
Burial will be at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia. A memorial service will be held in July 2018 at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
Arrangement have been entrusted to Poitras, Neal & York Funeral Home, Cornish.
Online condolence messages can be submitted at www.mainefuneral.com. Gifts in his memory may be made to:
General Scholarship Fund
Military Officers Association of America
201 N. Washington St.
Alexandria, VA 22314
www.moaa.org
Washington National Cathedral
3101 Wisconsin Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20016-5098
https://cathedral.org
Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland
217 Landing Road
Westbrook, ME 04092
https://arlgp.org/