Northeast Harbor
Gerrish H. Milliken, Jr. died on January 11, 2015 unexpectedly but peacefully and quietly at the age of 97 years after a long and full life. He died at Birch Bay Village in Bar Harbor, ME attended by his beloved wife Phoebe and surrounded by his adoring children in spirit and love along with countless members of his extended family and close friends gathered over his lifetime. Gerrish was the son of Gerrish Hill and Agnes Gayley Milliken of New York City. He was born on May 13, 1917 in the family residence at 723 Park Avenue, New York City.
He attended Groton School and Yale University (many times over) and served in the U.S. Army in the Philippines during World War II. He married Phoebe Thayer Goodhue in a ceremony at King’s Chapel in Boston, Massachusetts on August 17, 1946 with the reception following at the Chilton Club, the start of a wonderful love affair which lasted for 24,984 days (almost 69 years). His first love, loyalty and great passion was for his immediate and extended family. He worked for family businesses for his entire life after the end of his military service in 1946. He was actively employed in Milliken & Company until retirement in 1982. He served as a Director on multiple family enterprises, most notably for Milliken & Company (from 1947 to 1996 after which he continued to serve as Director Emeritus), Mercantile Stores Company (from 1951 until the family’s interest was sold in 1998) and Baskahegan Company of Brookton, Maine (from 1959 to retirement in 2010). He worked tirelessly and enthusiastically to ensure that long held family values and traditions were upheld through company practices. He was actively involved in his chosen communities of Greenwich, Connecticut, with particular involvement in Rosemary Hall School (as board chair he successfully led its merger with Choate School) and the Greenwich Hospital (where three of his children were born) and Northeast Harbor, Maine, contributing significantly to the successes of the Neighborhood House, the Northeast Harbor Library, St. Mary & St. Jude Episcopal Church and Mt. Desert Island Hospital. One of his greatest joys was to ply the waters from Florida to Maine on Spindle, always arriving safely in port thanks in large part to the prayers of his wife Phoebe who could often be heard humming verses from “Eternal Father, Strong to Save”, with particular emphasis on the words, “O hear us when we cry to Thee for those in peril on the sea”. He was an avid shooter of clay pigeons and other wild fowl. Towards the end of his life he spent many hours reading and basking in the sun of the living room in The Haven with Phoebe near his side sorting and cataloguing the endless streams of papers and correspondence from friends and interests far and wide. He also was an enthusiastic supporter of many political causes too embarrassing to mention. At the age of 86, he chose to remove all alcohol from his life – thereby giving to himself, his immediate and extended family and friends the gift of the best years of his life. He loved people, reveled in the enjoyment of the day and knew how to share his enjoyment of life with all whom he touched – most specifically his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren in whom he was mightily pleased. He loved life so much that even at the end he yearned for more time here on earth.
He is survived by six children, his favorite sons: Gerry and his wife Gail, John Warren and his wife Anne, Stephen and his wife Rebecca, and, Peter and his wife Linzee; and, by his favorite daughters Phoebe and her husband Jim, and Susie. He had 11 Grandchildren and almost 11 Great Grandchildren.
A memorial service to celebrate his life will be held in July 2015 at St. Mary’s-by-the-Sea, Northeast Harbor, ME to be followed by a reception at the Northeast Harbor Neighborhood House. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to The Neighborhood House, P.O. Box 332, Northeast Harbor, ME 04662 or Mt. Desert Island Hospital, 10 Wayman Lane, Bar Harbor, ME 04609.
Arrangements in care of Jordan-Fernald, 1139 Main Street, Mt. Desert, ME. Condolences may be expressed at www.jordanfernald.com