Thomas Stanyer Latham, of Brewster, died suddenly on Friday, May 24 of an apparent heart attack.
The day was the 55th anniversary of his marriage to Janis (Rogers) Latham, formerly of Manchester, CT.
Born in Brewster, he was the sixth child of Joseph and Althea Latham, and a descendant of the Wing Family of Sandwich, one of whose members settled what is now the town of Brewster.
In addition to his wife, Latham leaves two sons: Thomas Jr. of Katy, Texas, currently working in Nigeria, and his wife, the Rev. Dr. Margie P. Latham; and Stephen, of Hamden, CT, and his wife, Fiona Scott Morton. He leaves three grandchildren, Sophie (13), Eleanor (9) and Robert (8), all of Hamden. He also leaves a sister, Althea Latham Bremner, of Brewster. He was predeceased by his four brothers.
Latham attended Brewster's elementary school, then Orleans High School, from which he graduated as president of the class of 1949. Like his brothers, he was known for his baseball prowess. After studying for two years at Tufts University, where he was elected to the freshman honor society, he entered the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, CT. He graduated in 1955, and was married the next day. His first station was the Port of Seattle, where his ship served native Alaskans before the territory became a state, and was involved in search and rescue operations in the Northern Pacific. His second assignment was as commanding officer of a LORAN station on the island of Iwo Jima.
Resigning from active duty, he received a master's degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Michigan. He was subsequently hired by the United Technologies Research Center in East Hartford, CT, where he worked for 35 years, earning a second master's degree in physics in the early 60's. At first, he collaborated with the University of Texas in the design and construction of a research reactor powered by nuclear fusion. He worked on multiple projects in multiple other areas, often collaborating with scientists from Europe, and finally spent several months visiting most of the capitol cities of Australia, seeking partnerships that would provide jobs for Australians in exchange for their purchase of helicopters from Hamilton Standard, one of the subdivisions of United Technologies.
Living briefly in South Windsor, CT, he served on its Scholarship Committee. He also chaired the stewardship committee of the West Hartford Unitarian Church and later became one of the founders of the Unitarian-Universalist Church East, in Manchester. After moving to Manchester, he served on its Scholarship Committee, became the president of U-U Church East, and was president of the Lutz Junior Museum. He also began to play tennis, a hobby that made good use of the strong left hand that had previously served him in baseball. (He was captain of the baseball team at the Coast Guard Academy.) He remained in the Coast Guard Reserve for 20 years, retiring as a Captain.
Before leaving the U.S. for Iwo Jima, he worked with subcontractors building a house in Brewster for his wife and first child. By the time the first floor was in place, he had to leave. But the house became the family haven for forty years until, retiring in 1995, he and his wife intended to make it their permanent home. But a year later, they began another, somewhat larger home. Both were on land deeded or willed by his parents. He became an active tennis player, joined the Orleans Yacht Club, served on the Brewster Building Needs and Assessment Committee, and was active in the First Parish (Unitarian-Universalist) Church, particularly its hiking group. He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 2004 and entered Epoch Senior Healthcare in 2010.
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