Carroll Elwin York

CARATUNK – Carroll Elwin York, 87, of Caratunk passed away Saturday, January 18, 2020 surrounded by his loving children, after a long battle of Alzheimer’s.

 

Carroll was born June 8, 1932 in Caratunk. He was one of five children born to Walter E. York and Leona (Innes) York. He attended local schools and graduated from Bingham High School. Memories of his childhood in Caratunk were the subject of many stories he would tell. From working in the family gardens and fields, tending the family livestock, summers at Pleasant Pond to guiding sports on Pierce Pond when he was a teen, he remembered all with great pride.

 

Carroll married Martha McKay on Jan. 13, 1951. They started their life together in Kokadjo, Maine, where Carroll worked as a scaler, eventually settling in West Forks. From there Carroll logged in Caratunk, East Moxie, Upper and Lower Enchanted and West Forks. He started out logging with horses and ended with cable skidders. Once he “retired” he kept cutting on his woodlots in Caratunk, by himself, until he was 76 when he declared he was out of wood to cut. His priorities were always for the future forest, the environment and making the next persons job easier.

 

Carroll just loved to hunt and fish. For 60 years he thoroughly enjoyed his week long hunting trip with friends and family at his hunting camp in East Moxie. He enjoyed numerous moose hunts and ice fishing trips. He owned his own airplane which he used to access remote ponds to fish. Once roads made his favorite ponds more accessible, most early summer evenings were spent fishing some pond close to home with family or friends. Carroll and Martha fished salmon rivers in New Brunswick and all over the Gaspe Peninsula They drove to Alaska and back two times to fish and enjoy the scenery. Carrolls ultimate fishing trip was a trip to Russia with five friends. Each day they were dropped from a helicopter to access the rivers and at how many salmon they caught and released each day.

 

In the 1980s, Carroll’s concern for the dwindling Maine deer herd got him nominated by the governor, and confirmed by the legislature, to serve on the Governors Council for the Department of Inland Fish and Wildlife. One of his main goals during this time in this position was the Implementation of the states bucks only law to help restore the Maine deer herd. It was very important to him that future generations have deer to hunt. He was also an active member of the Sportsman Alliance of Maine, First Selectman of West Forks, a Schoolboard member of MSAD 13, and an active member of The Forks Fish and Game Assoc.

 

Carroll lived with compassion and was totally dedicated to his family, friends and work. He never sat still. He thoroughly enjoyed everyday and always had a positive outlook. He always found time to help and to love. He trusted everyone and always worked toward making life better for anyone he could.

 

Carroll is survived by his three daughters, Faith and husband Alan Dame of Rochester, New Hampshire, Cindy and husband Dennis Frigon of Rockwood, and Pamela and husband Robert Mason of Arundel, 10 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, a brother William York of Skowhegan and a wife of 6 years, Shirley Gammon of Rumford.

 

He is predeceased by his wife of 58 years, Martha (McKay) York, his son Allen S. York, his brothers John York and Colby York, a sister, Shirly Breau and a daughter-in-law, Pamela York.

 

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, May 16, 2020 at 10:00 AM at the First Congregational Church, Meadow Street in Bingham, burial will follow at Webster Cemetery Caratunk.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to:

The Alzheimer’s

Association

383 U.S. Route One #2C

Scarborough, ME 04074

or to

ElderAbuse.org

276 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10001

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