ETHAN EMERY

EMERY, Ethan Died with family at his side on April 2, 2021 at his home in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico at the age of 83, from heart-related complications. Ethan was born May 22, 1937 in Cincinnati to John Josiah Emery and Irene Gibson Emery. Forever supported and encouraged by the life-long friends he made at St. Paul's School, Harvard, and in the Porcellian Club, Ethan was an artist and an architect. In his early years, he followed in the footsteps of his grandfather, Charles Dana Gibson, the famous illustrator who created the Gibson Girl, and painted, until he discovered the fulfilling work of restoring and renovating old houses and barns, and eventually building the beautiful Casa Misión in San Miguel. Ethan also had a great love for acting, which he developed in the Hasty Pudding Club. Whether it was Noel Coward plays with the Rhinebeck Theatre Society, Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals with the Camden Civic Theatre, or Oscar Wilde plays with the Bajio Rep, Ethan relished being in front of an audience. Ethan lived a full life, travelling and living all over the world, including Thailand, Spain, England, and Mexico. Because of these travels, he will be remembered as a chef with a flair for Asian dishes, as a hunter who could imitate a wanton turkey hen, and as the consummate friend who would arrive wearing a sarong and no shoes and proceed to entertain all with stories of his wonderful adventures and his slightly wicked sense of humor. Ethan finally settled in San Miguel de Allende at the turn of the century, and proceeded to make that his home- learning Spanish and making friends with the wide-ranging community of ex-pats and locals alike. There, he threw himself into building his greatest legacy- a bed and breakfast, complete with a rich (but false) backstory that included monks who had taken vows of silence and civil war cannonballs. Ethan will be missed most in Maine, where his presence on the family compound was a foregone conclusion. Every summer he could be found working on this or that project, be it his barn or the Chapel, howling now and then as he dropped a hammer on his bare feet, and imploring the help of willing cousins at the cement mixer. From the summers he spent there as a child to the later years when he would drive from Mexico to Maine, he always considered 700 Acre Island in Maine to be his constant home and, where he has chosen to have his ashes buried alongside the many dogs- Bofus, Ruff, Floater, Pita, and Ale- who were his faithful companions throughout his life. He is survived by his four children, Josiah (Lee), Dana (Susan), Matthew, and DeWolf, his six grandchildren, and his long-time partner, Teresa Gavilán. He also leaves behind his brother, George Post, and numerous nieces and nephews who adored him. He was predeceased by his four sisters, Nancy Magro, Irene Goodale, Lela Steele, and Melissa Lanier. His marriages to Liliane Tuck, Rose Emery, and Nira Beram ended in divorce. A service for Ethan was held at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Mexico on April 5th, and the family is planning a memorial service in Dark Harbor, Maine in early August. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you indulge in an extravagant Chinese meal with far too much food in his memory.

View the online memorial for Ethan EMERY