HAMPSTEAD - Wilber E. Longshore, 65, a longtime resident of Hampstead, New Hampshire, died suddenly Saturday afternoon, September 19, 2009, in Ipswich, Massachusetts. According to his family, Westy died while aboard his beloved sailboat, the Aramoana.
Born in Malone, New York, on April 19, 1944, he was the son of the late Wilber E. Longshore and Marjorie Morey Longshore Cropley Make of Derry, New Hampshire. A 1962 graduate of Pinkerton Academy, he was a professional aviator with over 25,000 hours of flying time. After several years as a charter and corporate pilot - during which time he flew former president George H. W. Bush and the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy - Mr. Longshore joined Bar Harbor Airlines. He later joined Wiggins Airways, where he was employed as a pilot at the time of his passing.
A lifelong collector of model trains, rare toys, and antique outboard marine engines, Mr. Longshore was a skilled engineer, mechanic, and carpenter, as well as an ardent conservationist and environmentalist. He was a longtime director of the Big Island Pond Corporation, and of the Ipswich Bay Yacht Club. In his younger years, he was an avid water-skier who won several competitions.
He leaves his loving wife of 38 years, Leonie Nielsen, of Hampstead; two loved sons, Charles Longshore of Derry, New Hampshire, and David Longshore of New York City; two cherished daughters, Suzanne Longshore and her husband, George Anthony Nigro II, of Hampstead, New Hampshire; and Caroline Longshore, of Louisville, Kentucky; a devoted sister, Cheryl Cropley O’Connell of Derry, New Hampshire; beloved grandchildren Benjamin David Proulx, George Anthony Nigro III, and Jenora Longshore; a loving nephew, Arthur O’Connell, and two beloved nieces, Sara Barton and Caroline Dodge.
Calling hours were held on Wednesday evening from 4-8p.m. at the Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 15 Birch St. Derry NH with a celebration of his life at 8p.m. The burial will be held privately at a later date by the family.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that a donation be made in Westy’s name to the Ipswich Bay Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program, Quay Rd., Ipswich, MA 01938.