Lloyd D. Higgins Jr.

LAKE GEORGE Lt. Lloyd D. Higgins Jr., USN Retired, 65, of Higgins Road, passed away Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2007, at home, surrounded by his loving family following a courageous battle with mesothelioma. He was born Nov. 18, 1941, in Jamacia, N.Y., the son of Lloyd D. Higgins Sr. and Edith (Paterson) Higgins. Lloyd moved with his parents to Lake George from Jamacia, Long Island in 1949. He was a graduate of Lake George Central School, Class of 1959. He immediately enlisted in the United States Navy six days out of high school and proudly served his country for 20 years. Lloyd married Carol Irene Harris on Oct. 14, 1961, at Harrisena Community Church, Queensbury. He was assigned to the Naval Nuclear Power Training Unit Prototype as a student under instruction when this program was in its infancy. Lloyd worked his way up through the enlisted ranks serving on both the USS John Marshall and the USS Sam Rayburn with 10 patrols in seven years. He returned to the prototype as an instructor and had the opportunity for further advancement to the Naval Reactor Program. Lloyd advanced from chief machinist mate to commissioned officer status after taking the Naval Engineering Exam, at which time he was hand-selected by Adm. Hyman Rickover, the director of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. This honor was bestowed on only the top one percent of military personnel. Lloyd was transferred to the Naval Reactor Representatives Office in Groton, Conn. He was directly involved with oversight, fueling and refueling at Naval Nuclear Propulsion plants and for naval submarines. He directly followed new construction vessels including pier side propulsion plant testing and the loading and unloading of reactor cores in the new constructions. Lloyd enforced the proper adherence to propulsion plant practices and procedures at state and submarine base sites. He was then transferred to the Naval Submarine Support Facility as a RADCON (radiological control) officer. He retired from the U.S. Navy in June of 1979 as a lieutenant and returned to civilian life at his home in Lake George, N.Y. Lloyd was a life member of the United States Submarine Veterans, an organization that perpetuates the memory of shipmates who gave their lives in the course of their duties while serving their country. He was an avid model railroader with membership in the National Model Railroad Association. Lloyd was also a member of the North American Fishing Club, a dedicated RV'er and a certified member of the American Tree Farm System of New York. Lloyd was predeceased by his father, Lloyd D. Higgins Sr. and one brother, Thomas Higgins. Survivors include his wife, Carol (Harris) Higgins of Lake George; his mother, Edith Higgins of Summerville, S.C.; three children: Brian Keith Higgins and his wife, Donna Leahy, of Winston-Salem, N.C., Laurie Sue Moore and her husband, Clyde, of Queensbury; Dawn Louise Gideon and her husband, Gerald, of Glens Falls; six grandchildren: Luke Brian Leahy-Higgins, Jude Mikhail Leahy-Higgins, Emily Jane Moore, Elliot James Moore, Erica Lynn Bartholomew and Jacob Matthew Bartholomew; one brother, Charles Albert Higgins and his wife, Patti, of Glens Falls; one sister, Dorothy Ann Leway and her husband, David, of Colombia, Tenn.; three aunts: Elsie Timms of Lake George, Rose Paterson and Ruth Woolfrey, both of Summerville, S.C.; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Services and burial with full military honors will be conducted at noon, Friday, Oct. 26, 2007, at the Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Veteran's Cemetery, 200 Duell Road, Schuylerville, N.Y., with the Rev. Lamont D. Robinson, pastor of the Harrisena Community Church, officiating. Friends may call from 1 to 3 p.m. today, Oct. 25, at the Stafford Funeral Home, Inc., 90 Montcalm St., Lake George. Lloyd's family would like to sincerely thank Dr. Dean Reali and High Peaks Hospice of Warren County for their heartfelt care and support. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent in Lloyd's memory to High Peaks Hospice, Inc., 286 Glen St., Glens Falls, NY 12801.

This obituary was originally published in the Post Star.