John Roy Tebbetts Jr.

John Roy
Tebbetts Jr., 90
'Roy'
GORHAM -- John Roy Tebbetts Jr., 90, of Gorham, died peacefully in the presence of his family at the Maine Veterans Home in Scarborough on Jan. 3, 2011.
He was born in Glen Falls, N.Y., on Sept. 4, 1920, and grew up in Massachusetts. He was the son of John Roy and Marion Mildred (Bisbee) Tebbetts. Although Roy did not retire to Maine until 1986, Roy's family was from Maine and he always considered Maine to be his true home.
Roy enlisted in the Navy in World War II and served as a quartermaster aboard a tugboat in Portland Harbor during the early years of the war. Roy was later transferred to a tanker and ended his naval career in the Pacific aboard a submarine chaser.
A machinist by trade, Roy machined component parts for equipment that is still on the moon. Roy was also an accomplished and passionate fisherman, artist, model boatbuilder and ham radio operator who was known for his dry Yankee wit and his love of the Maine coast. Roy served for many years as a member of the Civil Defense Squadron in Massachusetts where he used his skills as an amateur radio operator to assist in emergencies. His call letters were K1ZTA.
Roy had a home in Limington before moving to Gorham to live with his family. He also spent many happy summers at his cottage on Damariscotta Lake in Jefferson.
He was married to Janet Marden (Florance) Tebbetts for 50 years until she lost her life in a tragic automobile accident in Standish in 1997. He is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, Joan Linda (Lin) and James Campbell of San Jose, Calif., and his son and daughter-in-law, John Tebbetts and Martha Gaythwaite of Gorham; as well as his two grandsons of Gorham, John (Jack) and William (Bill) Tebbetts.
Throughout the last years of his life, Roy was provided exceptional care and companionship by his home health aide, Norma Roberts, and more recently by the compassionate staff at the Maine Veterans Home.
Service will be held at the Dolby and Dorr Funeral Chapel, 76 State St., in Gorham, on Saturday, Jan. 15, at 1:30 p.m. A private graveside service will be held at the Hillside Cemetery in Gorham in the spring of 2011.
In lieu of flowers, memorial
donations may be made to:
The Maine Veterans Home
Patient Activities Fund
290 U.S. Route 1
Scarborough, Maine 04074
John Roy Tebbetts Jr.