L. William Presby

LESTER WILLIAM PRESBY, JR. LISBON � Lester William (Wild Bill) Presby, Jr., 79 of 81 Old Gulf Road, Lisbon, NH, died Wednesday, July 15, 2009 at his home after a long illness. He was born on September 7, 1929 in Lisbon to Lester William Presby, Sr. and Mary K. (Nihan) Presby. He graduated from Lisbon High School in 1947. As a young man he grew up on the family dairy farm (Klay Knoll Farm) in Bath, NH. In his early twenties he worked as a logger in Maine and New Hampshire. In 1948 he founded Presby Construction which he operated for many years and finally sold to his son David in 1985. He was one of the first people to own a bulldozer which he used to build some of the first power lines to the area. He was also the first contractor in the area to acquire a backhoe. During his life he was involved in numerous business pursuits besides his construction business. He bought and sold numerous pieces of property and developed and owned a number of gravel operations. In 1983 he joined his son Wayne and Joel Bedor of Littleton in buying the Mount Washington Railway Company. In 1991 he joined a group of local business people who purchased and operated the Mount Washington Hotel and Resort until 2006 when it was sold to CNL Income Properties and Celebration Associates. From 1991 to 2006 he served on the board of directors and as vice president of the company which owned and operated the hotel complex. He was instrumental in making the decisions to acquire and expand the Bretton Woods Ski Area, to acquire the real estate development and construction operations in Bretton Woods, as well as the decision to winterize and operate the Mount Washington Hotel on a year round basis. During his life he served on the Lisbon Volunteer Fire Department. He was a member of the Lisbon Lions Club and the Lisbon Outing Club, the Lisbon Stumpjumpers as well as the Good Ole Boys Club of Woodsville, NH. He enjoyed all of his business pursuits as well as fishing, hunting and playing poker. During the later part of his life, he accompanied his sons on trips to Quebec, Alaska and the Great Northwest Territories fishing for King Salmon and trophy lake trout. Later in life he also enjoyed making the rounds of the various Lisbon Coffee Shops and getting up to speed on the local town gossip. Bill was well known for his sharp blue eyes, sense of humor and devilish nature. He is survived by his wife, Elledra Presby, of Lisbon, his brother and spouse, Lynn and Brenda Presby of Freedom, NH, his sons and their spouses, David W. Presby and Sheila Presby of Sugar Hill, NH, Bradley E. Presby and Joyce Presby of Bethlehem, NH, Wayne W. Presby and Susan Presby of Littleton, NH, his daughter and her spouse, Michael Emmi and Kathy-Rae Emmi of Lewiston, ME, his grandsons and their spouses, Thaddeus Presby and Joselle Presby of Franconia, NH, Trevor Presby and Samantha Presby of Sugar Hill, NH, Ryan Presby of Bethlehem, NH, his granddaughters and their spouses Nick Sylvain and Casey Sylvain of Watertown, MA, Abigail Marie Presby of Littleton, NH, his great grandsons Aden Presby of Franconia, NH, Dane Presby of Franconia, NH, Jett Presby of Sugar Hill, NH and his great granddaughter Morgan Presby of Sugar Hill, NH Bill was predeceased by his father and mother, Lester W. Presby and Mary K. Presby of Bath, NH and his sister Lois also of Bath, NH. SERVICES � A graveside service will be held on Monday, July 20th at 11:00 a.m. in the Pettyboro Cemetery with Rev. Lyn Winter officiating. In lieu of flowers donations may be made in Bill�s name to either North Country Paws and Claws Animal Rescue at 59 W. Main Street, Littleton, NH 03561 or the Littleton Charitable Foundation at 600 St. Johnsbury Road, Littleton, NH 03561 or www.littletonhospital.org who in partnership with the NH State Board of Nursing will use the funds to provide scholarships for individuals wishing to pursue a career as a Licensed Nursing Assistant. (LNA). Arrangements and care have been entrusted to the Pillsbury Funeral Homes and Cremation Service, Inc. To view an online memorial or to send a message of condolence, please visit www.pillsburyfh.com.