These Skippers will live in our hearts as we sail the waters of Back Bay
Bill Quayle
1938 – 2022
Class of 2011
Sail Number 1330
“I am a woodworker,” said Bill Quayle, and it describes him to a ‘T’. His long list of crafts ran from fishing lures, wall sculptures, and ship models to birdhouses, a cane, and a back scratcher. He assisted with boatbuilding workshops at the New Hampshire Boat Museum, and after joining the Back Bay Skippers in 2011, he played a major role in the model yacht building classes as well as all of its other activities. From his career as a drafting supervisor for Channel Products to sailing across Lake Erie in a boat he made himself, his many talents – and humor – enhanced our group.
Wayne MacDonald
1941 – 2021
Sail Number 202
Soling Building Class of 2013
US12 Building Class of 2014
Mac joined the Navy right out of high school. As a parachute rigger he commanded many men, and also was stationed in Antarctica for several years, both duties providing an abundance of interesting stories to tell. Mac received numerous awards over his time in the service, including excellence in marksmanship, and retired from the Navy in 1981 as a Petty Officer First Class.
After the service, Mac was employed by L. L. Bean then Central Maine Power before retiring. We’re glad he resumed his naval career with the Back Bay Skippers.
Ellen A. Koehler
1946 – 2021
Back Bay Skippers Scorekeeper
Those who live in the hearts of loved ones left behind never really die — like a song that lingers when the music is playing no more. Or the fragrance that stays in the air where a flower has blossomed before. Like a star that continues to glow long after the breaking of dawn. The ones we have loved remain with us still, as the beautiful memories go on.
The Back Bay Skippers will long remember Ellen Koehler. They’ll never forget her willingness to volunteer – nor the bark of her reprimand as scorekeeper when a sailor crossed the starting line too soon. With her keen eyes focused on that invisible alignment, her gentle voice transformed to one of authority when skippers jockeying for position at the start failed to round the offset mark. That same verbal clout cleared the finish line of dawdling yachts so those in their wake had room to complete the course. Victims acknowledged with a chuckle, however, her gift of banter. Born in the Philadelphia area on May 4, 1946, it certainly was a coincidence and perhaps a sign of things to come that Ellen’s first occupation was sail maker.
Bruce Maclellan
1946 – 2021
Soling Building Class of 2014
Sail Number 2300
Bruce Maclellan was born in Wakefield, Massachusetts and retired to the Wolfeboro area. He was a dedicated trustee of the New Hampshire Boat Museum, leading boat auctions as well as Ice-Out dinners, hand-in-hand with wife, Anne. After stepping down as a trustee, Bruce continued to support the Boat Museum in a volunteer capacity.
Bruce joined the Soling building class of 2014 and was an enthusiastic sailor in our program.
Ronald A. Holly
Sail Number 111
1934 – 2020
Soling Building Class of 2011
Ron Holly, a member of the Back Bay Skippers, joined the Soling Building Class of 2011. A skilled woodworker, he not only built and sailed his Soling 1M but spent many enjoyable hours restoring a 1941 mahogany runabout.
Active at the NH Boat Museum, he participated in many of the events scheduled, offering his services as a volunteer in boatbuilding.
Ron relocated to Ft. Myers, Florida several years ago and passed away on July 30 this year.
Thomas Pickett Magruder Greig
Sail Number 77
Tom Greig
1956 – 2020
Soling Building Class of 2012
Tom Greig, also a member of the Back Bay Skippers, enrolled in the Soling Building Class of 2012. Tom summered in Jamestown, Rhode Island, sailing on the ocean from an early age and later developing an interest in R/C boats. He often participated in the Block Island Race on Jim Bishop’s J/44 Gold Digger and was a frequent member of the Gold Digger crew in races to Bermuda.
Always one of the lead skippers on Back Bay, Tom was a “go to” skipper for both sailing and technical help. Generous with his time and donations to any need the group had, Tom will be missed.
Anne Clarke Hunt
Sail Number 808
1950 – 2018
Raised in Barnstable, Massachusetts sailing Beetle Cats, Anne was a graduate of Boston University with a degree in physical therapy, a field she practiced throughout her life. Moving to Tuftonboro in 1984, Anne was a talented knitter and was active in the Wolfeboro Recreation Association as well as All Saints Church.
Joining the Back Bay Skippers after receiving a Soling for Christmas in 2016, she brought a smile and her childhood love of sailing to Back Bay.
Leonard Walter Abrahamson
Sail Number 40
1944 – 2017
Soling Building Class of 2012
Raised in Brockton, Massachusetts, Lenny served in Vietnam as an aviation mechanic. An industrial arts teacher, he was drawn to anything with an engine, and was involved in drag racing and snowmobiling. On the opposite end of the spectrum he raised Shelties.
Joining the Back Bay Skippers, he enjoyed many hours of sailing with the Soling fleet.
David Olson
1943 – 2017
Sail 43
Class of 2011
Born September 23, 1943 in Indianapolis, Indiana, David Olson was a passionate fan of the Indy 500. Earning a BFA from Pratt Institute and an MFA from Boston University, he became an accomplished artist and a juried member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, his work sold throughout the U.S. and Europe plus Central and South America. From background art in television shows and movies to galleries around the world, his art was appreciated. Using that talent, he taught practical art process and art history at Westfield State College, Holderness School, Brooks School, and Brewster Academy, always encouraging students to see the beauty in nature and to enjoy the experience of creating.
In addition to traveling around the country with his wife, Susan, he also served as chairman of the Carroll County Democrats, a board member for the Wolfeboro Corinthian Yacht Club, an active member of All Saints Episcopal Church, and an enthusiastic sailor with the Back Bay Skippers.
Allen Randlov
1945 -2013
Soling Building Class of 2012
Graduating from Northeastern with a degree in anthropology and earning a doctorate from Johns Hopkins, Allen volunteered for the Peace Corps and was stationed in Sierra Leone. Working for the U.S. State Department, he traveled the world and was assigned as an advocate for providing prosthetics, for which he was honored.
As a Back Bay Skipper he sailed with the best of them.
Henning Scherdin
Class of 2010
1940 – 2013
Born in Belgium, Henning had a passion for Formula 1 cars, motorcycles, and sailboats. As a teen, he left to go to sea on the square-rigger Pamir, but fortunately he became sick and the ship sailed without him — and sunk on that trip. A skilled draftsman, Henning became a silk screen printer, but the sea was still calling. He worked on a freighter on the Baltic Sea to Sweden and Norway then on the Oldenburg across the Atlantic to the U.S. He rode an Austrian motorcycle from New Hampshire to South America and ended up as a silk screener of circuit boards with Siemen, eventually working for Lydall in Ossipee.
Sailing his Soling 1M on Back Bay brought back memories of larger ships.
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Henning Scherdin 1940 – 2013