Harrison "Lefty" Homans '46

 Harrison "Lefty" Homans passed away on Memorial Day, May 27, 2024, at age 96. Lefty was born in Bangor, Maine, on January 5, 1928, to Harry and Lida West Homans. Doted on by his mother, two older sisters and childless aunts, Lefty began his life as he ended it, surrounded by family and friends who adored him for his easy going nature, abundant charm, boyish grin, and love of a good time.
Lefty graduated from Bangor High School, Fryeburg Academy and the University of Maine. He enlisted in the Army in 1946, spent time in Japan as part of the occupation force and finished his service as a motor pool driver in Washington, D.C., for the Pentagon. It was at the University of Maine, after his discharge from the service, that he met Margaret "Peggy" Thompson, who he married in 1955 and spent the rest of his life with. He was also fortunate to enjoy lifelong friendships with many of his college classmates and Kappa Sigma fraternity brothers until he became the last man standing.

Lefty and Peggy settled in Bangor, and raised their two children, Fritz and Amy, in Lefty's childhood home on the middle block of Maple Street. Over the years, he declined promotions that would have required the family to move out of state. Lefty did not want his children to leave their friends and teammates, or the life he and Peggy were providing to them in a small city close to oceans, mountains and lakes. As a result, he gave them the gift of an idyllic childhood in Maine, with summers spent in a cottage on Penobscot Bay from which he commuted to and from work.

In 1981, with an empty nest, Lefty and Peggy moved to Bath, Maine where they quickly made new friends and entertained frequently at their comfortable home on High Street. After a long career in sales, Lefty retired from Brockway Smith Company in 1993 and soon after, he and Peggy began dividing their time between Maine and Sun City Center, Florida. In 2002, they returned to Penobscot Bay where they spent summers in their cottage in Bayside village to be closer to their grandchildren. More friends, both young and old, again were quickly made.

Although small in stature, Lefty was a gifted athlete who competed well into his 90s in both golf and swimming. Always looking for a way to earn spending money as a boy, Lefty began caddying at age nine and golfed every year thereafter until his eyesight failed him at 95. For many years, he competed in one or more senior leagues around the state, regularly winning his age group during the summer schedule of tournaments. As much as Lefty loved to win, what he most enjoyed was the comradery with his friends, especially those in his regular foursomes as they drove to and from the tournaments together and dissected in great detail the day's events.

In his 50s, Lefty saw how much fun Peggy was having as a member of the Maine Masters swim team and decided to join, despite having only basic swimming skills. He became an accomplished swimmer over the ensuing decades, regularly competing at regional and national events around the country, and earned All American honors as a member of a relay at nationals. At 94, Lefty was still driving himself to the pool four mornings a week where he swam for an hour and was home for breakfast by 8.

Lefty was also a lifelong downhill skier and he and Peggy spent many winters skiing at Vail and in Europe. He attributed his lack of ski injuries to what he described as his "survival crouch," which served him particularly well on Maine's icy slopes where he taught his children to ski and in his 80s skied with his grandchildren.

Social to his core, Lefty made and diligently maintained countless friendships in his professional, golfing, swimming and skiing worlds. His well-worn address book was truly a thing to behold.
Fully committed to fitness, Lefty was undaunted by the restraints imposed by COVID restrictions and during the winters of 2020 and 2021, he bundled up and walked four to six miles a day in all weather in his daughter's backyard in Portland. Snowstorms delayed his outings only as long as it took to snowblow paths around the yard. Needless to say, Lefty was not among those who gained weight or fell into physical disrepair during home confinement.

A true son of Maine, Lefty knew every backroad and short cut to anywhere and everywhere. He loved driving through Maine best of all, but also lived for a good road trip. One memorable trip involved a three day drive from Florida to Maine, with two cats who stubbornly resisted sedation and yowled incessantly, but did not deny Lefty the simple pleasure of the open road. Lefty was also unparalleled in his ability not only to pack a U-Haul trailer, but in maneuvering it through Labor Day traffic on multi-lane urban highways in order to deliver his children and their belongings to their respective universities and apartments. He was at his finest making the required quick lateral traverse across three lanes of traffic to access Storrow Drive in Boston, from the north.

Lefty's children were certain that his proudest achievements in life were his five holes in one. However, he was without question a loving father who spent years driving his children around New England, Canada, and the East coast to swim meets, standing on pool decks officiating their meets and rolling bleary-eyed into the driveway on countless Sunday nights, hours before the start of his workday. He was also the father who stood in the street at night after dinner and threw a baseball or football to anyone who wanted to play, gave pool deck pep talks to his children's friends before their events, and was reliably generous with his good humor. As a proud grandfather, he pitched in to help with infants and toddlers whenever needed and thoroughly enjoyed every stage of their young lives, especially after they were old enough to share a good laugh and private jokes.

Lefty was predeceased by his son, Frederick "Fritz" Homans; and his sisters, Elizabeth "Betty" Hancock and Gertrude McNally. He is survived by his wife of nearly 69 years, Peggy; his daughter, Amy Homans; grandchildren, Hannah and Harry Homans, and Noah and Nathaniel Youngren; former son-in-law, Harold Youngren; special Hancock and McNally nieces and nephews; and dear friend, Leanne Pedro. Friends and family alike will remember him for his quick wit, charm, warm friendship, love of a good story, contagious grin, and twinkling blue eyes. (Lefty was likely the only person who could manage to make a prosthetic eye twinkle.) He was universally adored and will be missed by all.
In lieu of flowers, those wishing to make a donation in Lefty's name may contribute to the Northport Golf Club, P.O. Box 187, Belfast, ME 048915, and dedicate the donation to the Junior Golf Program.
A celebration of Lefty's life will be held on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, at 11 a.m. at The Belfast Boathouse, 34 Commercial Street, Belfast, ME. A private interment will be held later this summer in Casco Village, Maine, a place cherished by Lefty since 1945.

Arrangements are under the direction and care of the Strong-Hancock Funeral Home, 612 Main Street, Damariscotta, ME 04543. Condolences, and messages for his family, may be expressed by visiting: StrongHancock.com.