CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Richard “Dick” Stewart LeMoine passed away peacefully on April 1, 2019 at the Chatham Ridge Assisted Living Center in Chapel Hill, N.C., after a battle with cancer.
Dick was born in 1936 in Bath, to Wanda E. LeMoine (Stewart) and Thomas E. LeMoine.
He attended kindergarten through high school in Bath, graduating from Morse High in 1955. He served in the National Guard and spent a year in California working for his brother, Jerry LeMoine, before returning to Maine to attend Maine Maritime Academy.
In 1958 he married Judith “Judy” Holbrook LeMoine in a secret ceremony, accompanied by his other brother and his wife, Fred and Eleanor Toothaker. It was not allowed at the time to be married while attending MMA. Dick liked to recount the story of how he kissed Judy for the first time in kindergarten. Their marriage would last 60 years and he was with her until he died, for better and for worse. They had their first child, Paul E. LeMoine, in 1959. Dick graduated from MMA in 1960 and went to work immediately as a merchant marine engineer. Their first daughter, Julie E. LeMoine, was born in 1962, followed by a son, Richard S. LeMoine II, in 1963. Dick stopped “shipping out” to be with Judy and the kids and went to work for Bath Iron Works until 1966, when he moved to Cleveland to take a position with the American Bureau of Shipping. Dick’s career with ABS would lead him to positions and adventures all around the world.
In 1967, their third son, Fredrick M. LeMoine, was born in Cleveland and shortly thereafter the family of six moved to Singapore. Dick and Judy’s second daughter, Sarah L. LeMoine, was born in Singapore in 1972. The family of seven returned to the U.S. in 1973, first to Stoughton, Mass., then Bath, then to Pembroke, Mass.
In 1980, Dick and Judy moved to the Philippines and in 1984 to Hong Kong. One more foreign assignment followed in 1987 when they moved back to Singapore. Dick and Judy then moved back to the U.S., first to New Jersey where Dick worked on the 101st floor of the World Trade Center in N.Y.C., and then back to Bath where Dick retired from ABS. He ran his own consulting business before settling full time into retirement in 1995.
For close to 20 years, he then enjoyed reconnecting with his friends in Bath and supporting Morse High School alumni events like the Blue and White Classic. He also frequently visited his children and their families, other family members, and friends around the U.S. In the summer months he could be found at his camp in Five Islands. In 2016, Dick and Judy moved to Sterling, Va. and in December 2018 to Chapel Hill, N.C., where their children could more readily offer support.
Dick is predeceased by his two brothers, Fred and Jerry, and his sister, Cynthia Footer.
In addition to Judy and his five children and their spouses (Shannon LeMoine, Jim Linehan, Doris Cassar, Tammy LeMoine, and Brian Williams), he is survived by 12 wonderful and talented grandchildren (Corey, Max, Lauren, Tyler, Carly, Marissa, Edward, Cade, Coleman, Edith, James and Zoe) whom he adored, two lovely sisters-in-law (Eleanor Toothaker and Lois LeMoine), and many nieces and nephews he was proud of and relished spending time with, and entertaining with jokes.
Dick was a member of the Masons, proudly following the tradition of his father, and he was a member of numerous maritime organizations around the world.
An avid traveler, his journeys will end in Bath, where he will be laid to rest in the family plot in Oak Grove Cemetery. A graveside service will be held on Monday, July 1 at 11 a.m. The entrance to the cemetery is off the Old Brunswick Road. Friends and family will be welcomed for fellowship in Five Islands after the ceremony.
Arrangements are by Daigle Funeral Home, 819 High Street, Bath. Condolences may be made online at www.Daiglefuneralhome.com.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to
The American Cancer Society
3 Bowdoin Mill Island
Suite 300
Topsham, 04086
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