H. Chester Wright, 83, passed away on June 17, 2019 at Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick with his family by his side. Born on Oct. 10, 1935 in Damariscotta, he was the son of Howard Rafield Wright and Faustina Susan Sidelinger.
Chester was raised by his grandparents, Howard and Amy Wright from Damariscotta Mills. He attended the Pond Road Elementary School until the fifth grade, and then attended the Damariscotta Mills Elementary School. Chester graduated from Lincoln Academy with the class of 1954 where he played baseball and was in the Marine Corps Reserves.
He married Elizabeth Jean Witham on April 24, 1955. In 1958, he volunteered for the Army ahead of being drafted. He served in Germany for two years, where he met Elvis Presley for which he was always very proud.
During his time in the service, his son Dale Chester Wright was born in 1959. After serving his country, he returned home to work in his family excavation business for many years. His daughter, Jean Elizabeth Wright, was born in 1962 and they settled together as a family in Damariscotta Mills, Nobleboro. Chester worked hard all of his life to make a very successful family business, but he was also a master oil burnerman, working throughout the years for South China Plumbing and Heating and Colby & Gale, as well as for Puckey Oil in Newcastle.
Chester also played very hard, attending NASCAR events every year, hunting and fishing with many of his close friends, and traveling with Betty Jean to many wonderful places that included Florida, Hawaii, Thailand, Mexico, Italy, and Germany, as well as regular visits with his brother Jim in California and his brother Gary in Tennessee. Chester was a deadeye with the shotgun, and could cheat at cribbage without you ever knowing it. He was a terrific dancer and would dance with anyone who thought they could keep up. He and Betty Jean enjoyed many Saturday nights dancing at Lakehurst with wonderful friends.
Chester is survived by his wife, Betty Jean; his son, Dale and his wife Kathy and their children, Neil and his wife Chelsee, Kyle and his wife Kayla, and Kirk and his wife Tonya; his daughter, Jean Wright and her children, Matthew and his wife Kate, Sarah and her partner Ben Smart, and Katie and her partner Jason Thibault; 10 great-grandchildren, Chiara, Lilah, and Derrick Wright, Harper and Charlotte Wright, Fiona and Connor Eugley, Benjamin Smart, Baylee Eugley and Kylee Thibault (expected September 2019); his brothers, Jim Barstow and his wife Karen of Ballico, Calif., and Gary Wright and his wife Donna of Hornbeak, Tenn.; special brother-in-law, Weston Witham and his wife Diane of Boothbay Harbor; as well as many nieces and nephews.
A celebration of Chester’s life will be held at 10 a.m., on Saturday, June 22 at the Darrows Barn at Round Top Farm, 3 Round Top Lane, Damariscotta.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, PO Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5014.
Arrangements are under the direction and care of the Strong-Hancock Funeral Home, 612 Main St., Damariscotta. Condolences, and messages for his family, may be expressed by visiting StrongHancock.com.
