Peter Paul Luce

1929 - 2018

Peter Paul Luce, the second son of Time Inc founder, Henry Robinson Luce, died peacefully at his home in Cherry Hills Village, CO. He was 89 years old. Born in Manhattan on May 18, 1929, Luce was raised there and in Gladstone, New Jersey. He was educated at the Somerset Hills School, Brooks School and MIT, where he rowed crew and joined Phi Beta Epsilon. Following a stint in the US Air Force, Luce married Margaret Hamilton of Truro, Nova Scotia and built their family home, Cooper's Bluff, in Cove Neck, NY. They had four daughters with whom they shared their love of the sea. A passionate sailor and member of the Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club in Centre Island, NY, Luce spent many blissful years sailing from the Caribbean to Nova Scotia on his schooner, Privateer. He found joy on the water - and later, in the skies. After marrying Ann Raymond of Gloucester, MA in 1967, they moved to Colorado and replaced sailboats with airplanes, flying over the Rocky Mountains in their dual Bonanza V35's. Luce's passion for planes propelled him to invest in a number of new designs, including the Interceptor 400, a lightweight single engine turbo-prop that was later modified into a militarized version, the Interceptor 1400-M. The purchase of his first of several Mitsubishi MU2s prompted him to join LifeLine Pilots, the volunteer pilot organization that provides free flights for patients and their families who are in need of medical diagnosis, treatment and follow-up care. Joined by his third wife, Elizabeth Bardsley, he logged over 4000 hours flying for LifeLine and other worthy causes. Luce gave up flying at age 75 but he never lost his love of it. He was an active Board Member of Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum and the Colorado Aviation Historical Society. He taught "Aviation for Non-pilots" at the Osher Lifelong Institute (OLI) in Denver and encouraged interest in aviation wherever he went. And when one of his daughters voiced her desire to sky-dive, Luce dryly replied; "Why would you jump out of a perfectly good airplane?" In 2017, actor and pilot Harrison Ford honored Luce with his Legends of Aviation Award at the Living Legends of Aviation annual event, an organization supporting the Kiddie Hawk Air Academy, which provide programs to spark children's interest in aviation. Peter Luce is survived by three of his four daughters, two step children, five grandchildren, two step grandchildren and two great grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to LifeLine Pilots, Kiddie Hawk Air Academy or Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum.