Voyle Besse passed away peacefully at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston on the evening of Oct. 28, 2009, after a long battle with cancer.
Voyle was born in Clinton on July 18, 1925, the second son of Charline Libbey Abbott and Floyd Rowe Besse. He attended Bridgton Academy and, after World War II, graduated from Carleton College in Minnesota. He later earned a master's degree from New York University. During World War II he served in the Army Air Force as a tail gunner in B17s in flights over Germany. He was shot down in his last scheduled flight while dropping peace pamphlets, and the plane had to crash land in a field. All the crew survived.
Voyle loved literature, art, and music, and was a lifelong student of history, with a passion for justice and human rights. He taught for many years at Malverne High School on Long Island, N.Y., where he created one of the first black studies programs for secondary schools in the nation. After retirement from teaching he split his time between Harrison in summers on a family island retreat, and in winters, at his amazing apartment in Lewiston, a town he came to love.
He was an avid gardener, an enthusiastic dealer in antique glass, and a committed environmental activist. Voyle was one of a kind – a mentor, a conservative, a liberal, a great friend to decent people and to all animals, especially cats. He was a no-nonsense Maine "bodhisattva."
He was predeceased by his father; his mother; his older brother Belden A. Besse; and his beloved cat Flonk.
He is survived by numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and many friends. You all know who you are.
Private family services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers or rituals of grief, Voyle asked that you celebrate the joy of living. He requests that anyone who wishes to honor him in any way, plant a tree to live and flourish and add to the natural beauty of the good Earth.
Voyle was born in Clinton on July 18, 1925, the second son of Charline Libbey Abbott and Floyd Rowe Besse. He attended Bridgton Academy and, after World War II, graduated from Carleton College in Minnesota. He later earned a master's degree from New York University. During World War II he served in the Army Air Force as a tail gunner in B17s in flights over Germany. He was shot down in his last scheduled flight while dropping peace pamphlets, and the plane had to crash land in a field. All the crew survived.
Voyle loved literature, art, and music, and was a lifelong student of history, with a passion for justice and human rights. He taught for many years at Malverne High School on Long Island, N.Y., where he created one of the first black studies programs for secondary schools in the nation. After retirement from teaching he split his time between Harrison in summers on a family island retreat, and in winters, at his amazing apartment in Lewiston, a town he came to love.
He was an avid gardener, an enthusiastic dealer in antique glass, and a committed environmental activist. Voyle was one of a kind – a mentor, a conservative, a liberal, a great friend to decent people and to all animals, especially cats. He was a no-nonsense Maine "bodhisattva."
He was predeceased by his father; his mother; his older brother Belden A. Besse; and his beloved cat Flonk.
He is survived by numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and many friends. You all know who you are.
Private family services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers or rituals of grief, Voyle asked that you celebrate the joy of living. He requests that anyone who wishes to honor him in any way, plant a tree to live and flourish and add to the natural beauty of the good Earth.
Voyle Besse passed away peacefully at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston on the evening of Oct. 28, 2009, after a long battle with cancer.
Voyle was born in Clinton on July 18, 1925, the second son of Charline Libbey Abbott and Floyd Rowe Besse. He attended Bridgton Academy and, after World War II, graduated from Carleton College in Minnesota. He later earned a master's degree from New York University. During World War II he served in the Army Air Force as a tail gunner in B17s in flights over Germany. He was shot down in his last scheduled flight while dropping peace pamphlets, and the plane had to crash land in a field. All the crew survived.
Voyle loved literature, art, and music, and was a lifelong student of history, with a passion for justice and human rights. He taught for many years at Malverne High School on Long Island, N.Y., where he created one of the first black studies programs for secondary schools in the nation. After retirement from teaching he split his time between Harrison in summers on a family island retreat, and in winters, at his amazing apartment in Lewiston, a town he came to love.
He was an avid gardener, an enthusiastic dealer in antique glass, and a committed environmental activist. Voyle was one of a kind – a mentor, a conservative, a liberal, a great friend to decent people and to all animals, especially cats. He was a no-nonsense Maine "bodhisattva."
He was predeceased by his father; his mother; his older brother Belden A. Besse; and his beloved cat Flonk.
He is survived by numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and many friends. You all know who you are.
Private family services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers or rituals of grief, Voyle asked that you celebrate the joy of living. He requests that anyone who wishes to honor him in any way, plant a tree to live and flourish and add to the natural beauty of the good Earth.
Voyle was born in Clinton on July 18, 1925, the second son of Charline Libbey Abbott and Floyd Rowe Besse. He attended Bridgton Academy and, after World War II, graduated from Carleton College in Minnesota. He later earned a master's degree from New York University. During World War II he served in the Army Air Force as a tail gunner in B17s in flights over Germany. He was shot down in his last scheduled flight while dropping peace pamphlets, and the plane had to crash land in a field. All the crew survived.
Voyle loved literature, art, and music, and was a lifelong student of history, with a passion for justice and human rights. He taught for many years at Malverne High School on Long Island, N.Y., where he created one of the first black studies programs for secondary schools in the nation. After retirement from teaching he split his time between Harrison in summers on a family island retreat, and in winters, at his amazing apartment in Lewiston, a town he came to love.
He was an avid gardener, an enthusiastic dealer in antique glass, and a committed environmental activist. Voyle was one of a kind – a mentor, a conservative, a liberal, a great friend to decent people and to all animals, especially cats. He was a no-nonsense Maine "bodhisattva."
He was predeceased by his father; his mother; his older brother Belden A. Besse; and his beloved cat Flonk.
He is survived by numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and many friends. You all know who you are.
Private family services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers or rituals of grief, Voyle asked that you celebrate the joy of living. He requests that anyone who wishes to honor him in any way, plant a tree to live and flourish and add to the natural beauty of the good Earth.
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