- Date Of Birth: March 1, 1916
- Date Of Death: January 26, 2015
- State: Maine
Bath – Leonardo E. Buck, D.M.D. (Buckie) 98, of Bath died Monday, January 26, 2015 at Mid Coast Hospital after a period of declining health.
He was born in Woburn, MA on March 1, 1916, the son of William E. Buck, M. D. and Carrie C. Buck. Dr. Buck graduated from Morse High School, Class of 1933. In 1934 he attended Kents Hill School and continued on to Bowdoin College, Class of 1938 and then to Harvard Dental School, where he received a degree in dentistry in 1938.
On July 18, 1942 he married Letitia E. Lee of Springfield, VT. In September of that year he accepted a commission as a LTJG in the US Navy. He and his wife spent four years with duties in Newport, RI, Williamsburg, VA and with the 9th Naval Construction Battalion and 19th Naval Base Hospital on Tinian, in the Pacific.
Dr. Buck was an accomplished golfer and rules official. He won many awards and championships at the Bath Golf Course and at other courses around the state and in Pinehurst, NC.
As a member of the Maine State Golf Association he served as its’ President in 1951 and 1952 and as the secretary/treasurer from 1953 to 1957. He was President of the New England Golf Association in 1969 and 1970, United States Golf Association committee member, Chairman of the Board of the Bath Golf Course for three terms, member of the Board of Directors of the New England Senior Golf Association, charter member of the Board of Directors of the Maine State Golf Association’s Golf Scholarship Fund and member of the Bath Golf Course since its’ inception in 1932.
Buckie was inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1988 for his contributions to golf and in 1996 he was inducted into the Maine Golf Hall of Fame. In 2010, he was inducted into the Maine State Baseball Hall of Fame. He received the Ike Grainger Centennial Award for 44 years of service on the USGA Public Links and Senior Championship Committee as a rules official. It is noted that he had been a committee member longer than any other individual in the country.
Besides his love for golf, Buckie enjoyed hunting, fishing and boating on the Kennebec River. He, his wife and sons spent many happy days on their beloved island in the Kennebec. He enjoyed the companionship of his many friends, both young and old.
During the fall, Buckie could be seen at the Bath Farmer’s Market selling Japanese lanterns he had grown in his garden with the proceeds being donated to the Bath Area Family YMCA, for which he held many fond memories.
Survivors include two sons, Christopher C. Buck and his wife, Gail, of Bath and Robert L. Buck and his wife, Jean, of Woolwich; a grandson, Jonathan Buck and his wife, Jessica, of Hampden, ME, four granddaughters; Jennifer Bunge and her husband, David, of Cohasset, MA, Leslie McKenney and her husband, Eric, of Phippsburg, ME, Kathryn Temple of Brunswick, ME, Sara Matthews and her husband, Dennis, of Lisbon, ME, seven great grandsons and five great granddaughters.
He was predeceased by his wife, Letitia Buck and his son, Bruce Buck.
