FARMINGDALE — Percy Roy Tibbetts, 100, died Saturday, June 23, at the Maine Veterans’ Home in Augusta.
He was born on his family’s farm in Fayette, Maine, on February 11, 1912, the son of Anthony and Susie Tibbetts. His family lived in several places in Maine, eventually settling in Hallowell. After graduating from Hallowell High School, Class of 1930, Mr. Tibbetts worked at Manson and Church’s drugstore and then was employed by Central Maine Power Company for 44 years, retiring in 1977.
He met his future wife, Mary, when they were both working at the Central Maine Power Company store. They were married on February 19, 1944, at Christ Episcopal Church in Gardiner and lived on Dresden Avenue in Gardiner until 1996. Mr. Tibbetts served as a glider pilot and pilot instructor in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II. He continued flying a private plane with his commercial license for several years following the war. After 20 years in the Air Force Reserves, he retired in 1972 with the rank of Major.
He was devoted to his church, Gardiner Congregational, serving on its Board of Deacons and spending many Friday nights and Saturdays helping in the preparation of church suppers. After Gardiner Congregational disbanded in 2009, he continued to meet for weekly lunches as an “honorary member” of the church women’s organization. Mr. and Mrs. Tibbetts were welcomed by the Old South Congregational Church in Hallowell and regularly attended services there.
Mr. Tibbetts was a 75-year member of the Hermon Lodge of the Freemasons. His longtime membership was recognized with a pinning ceremony at his 100th birthday celebration, which was generously hosted by the Lodge. As Farmingdale’s oldest citizen, he was awarded the Boston Post Cane in 2010.
Over the years, he enjoyed fishing, hunting, gardening, bird-watching, skiing, and other activities that brought him close to nature. He loved spending summers with his family, boating, barbecuing, swimming, and fishing on Tacoma Lake at the camp he built with his wife in the 1950s. Mr. Tibbetts was also one of the founding members of the Grand Lake Stream Hunting Club, spending time at the “club’s” cabin during many hunting and fishing seasons.
In his retirement years, he traveled often with his wife, cruising the Caribbean, the Panama Canal, the Alaskan coast, and southern Mexico; touring Spain, Portugal, and Morocco; and visiting Hawaii and Taiwan. He looked forward to his weekly card games with Dick, Herbie, and Norman. And he became an avid reader, especially of mysteries and books on outdoor adventures.
Mr. Tibbetts will be remembered as a loving husband, father, grandfather, and greatgrandfather; a loyal friend; a devout Christian; and a vital, independent, and youthful centenarian. He was a gentle soul who lived frugally and was a great practitioner of “Yankee ingenuity.”
He was predeceased by his beloved wife of 66 years, Mary Barker Tibbetts, his parents, brothers Paul and Theodore, and sisters Sybil Hinds and Beatrice Greeley. Mr. Tibbetts is survived by his son, Peter, and his wife, Carolyn, of Clearlake Oaks, California; his daughter, Janet, and her husband, Michael Dana, of Harpswell; three granddaughters: Faye Tibbetts and her partner, Derek Sullivan, of Augusta, Libby Dana Ricciardi and her husband, Peter, of Maynard, Massachusetts, and Elyse Dana of Harpswell; two greatgrandsons, Owen and Maxwell; and many nieces and nephews.
He and his family greatly appreciated the excellent care that he received from the dedicated and compassionate caregivers on “C” Company wing of the Maine Veterans’ Home–Augusta.
A memorial service will be held at 1:30pm on Friday, June 29th at Old South Congregational Church, 135 Second Street, Hallowell. A committal service with military honors will be held on Saturday, June 30th at Oakgrove Cemetery in Gardiner.
In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Percy Tibbetts may be made to the Mary and Percy Tibbetts Memorial Fund, Gardiner Public Library, 152 Water Street, Gardiner, ME 04345. Arrangements are under the care of Staples Funeral Home. Messages of condolence may be sent to www.staplesfuneralhome.com.
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