George Henry Luce Of Hampton Bays Dies December 13

George Henry Luce of Hampton Bays died on December 13. He was 85.

Luce was born on April 25, 1936, to George Alton Luce and Olga Deurreschmidt of Riverhead. George was the first child of Alton and Olga and soon had a little sister Joan. As World War II approached, Luce’s mother and father split up.

His mother remarried and moved with her new husband and the children to Venezuela. When Luce was 14, he returned to the United States to continue his high school education at Trinity Pawling, where he was elected head prefect. He graduated in 1955, and went on to Northwestern University.

After his first semester at Northwestern, Luce enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served in Japan in a seaplane squadron as an electronics operator.

In 1962, Luce and his first wife had a baby boy, George H. Luce Jr. (aka Tiger). After having served almost five years, he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy. He began working as a mechanic on outboard motors in the back of G.A. Luce Hardware on Main Street in Riverhead, and also joined the East End Outboard Racing Club. Luce and first his wife split after a few years, but Tiger remained in Riverhead with his father.

Luce met Naudain Larsen, a young woman from City Island in the Bronx, and they were married in May 1966. Luce moved with his son, Tiger, to City Island to begin a life with Larsen and her daughter from a previous marriage, Elizabeth. In July 1968, the couple had another son, Lawrence. The Luce family lived on City Island until 1982, when they moved to Hampton Bays.

Back on Long Island, Luce continued to work in the marine business and was active in the Riverhead Lions, and the Association of Marine Industries. In June 1990, his wife, Naudain, died of cancer.

At age 63, Luce decided to retire and relax, and he moved to Montana to work on a cattle ranch. He developed many close friends in the town of Chinook, Montana, but as he aged, he missed his family on Long Island.

In 2013, he was diagnosed with lung cancer, and he beat it. In 2017, Luce suffered a stomach problem and was treated for colon cancer, and he beat that, too. In 2018, he had back pains and was diagnosed with prostate cancer. During this decade of his life, Luce worked for Hampton Bays School District as a part-time maintenance mechanic. Ever the philanthropist, he started an annual $750 scholarship, in memory of Naudain, for a graduating senior of Hampton Bays High School. Having survived three different types of cancer, and COVID, Luce, the man with the nickname “Old Iron Balls,” died on December 13 at the age of 85.

He is survived by his two sons George Jr. and Larry; his step-daughter Elizabeth; and his six grandchildren, Leanne, James, Robert (USMC), Phillip, Olivia, and Matthew; as well as many family and friends who have known and loved him along the way.

“A full life lived, and his work done, may George rest in peace,” his family said.

Visiting will be held on December 27, from 6-8 p.m., with a memorial service beginning at 8 p.m., at The Scott Rothwell Funeral Home in Hampton Bays.