LeRoy Herbert Wiegand, beloved husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather and brother passed away at home on the evening of Thanksgiving Day. Some might say“ how sad”; but, those of us who had in past years feasted on his chestnut dressing (chestnuts from the chestnut farm in Washington), homemade cranberry sauce (cranberries fresh from a Connecticut cranberry bog) and; of course, his candied pecan, rum sauce yams, thought “what a perfect way to go, on his favorite day to cook”.
Roy lived an adventurous full life. He was born and raised in New York, spending his summers at a vacation bungalow in Oakdale on Long Island. He loved to say that he had the experience of seeing Frank Sinatra perform as the entertainment in a New York City movie theater before he was well known and again, towards the end of his career, at the Orange County Fairgrounds.
When he was looking into college opportunities, Roy saw a brochure for SUNY Oswego (State University of New York) located on Lake Ontario. There was a picture of two girls in a canoe on the cover of the brochure. He saw more opportunities than just an education and sent in his application. That decision led to a successful career in education, a Masters Degree from Long Beach State and serving as a principal and a science teacher in Orange County. At the time of his retirement, he was teaching at Tustin High School. Well liked and respected, he has been currently in touch with some of his former students.
Roy joined the Marines during the Korean war. After his training, he was sent to El Toro Air Station and was an officer in charge of transport. After a golf game on the base in February in a light sweater, he never looked back. No-snow California was the place for him. He was a proud Marine and left his home for the last time with honor, draped with an American flag.
The sunny California weather provided fun-filled adventures on the water. He was an award-winning sailor; and, he and his sailing partner were even qualified to compete in the Olympic trials one year. In 1963, he was a crew member on a private boat, sailing from San Pedro to Maui. When Roy retired from sailboat racing, he purchased a very nice sportfishing boat. Some of his favorite trips over to Catalina were for white sea bass. He often went alone, spending a few days trying to catch the sometimes elusive fish, enjoying the sound of the waves lapping up against the boat and the solitude of the island.
When the time came to give up fishing, he switched to a bigger boat – a cruise ship. Many trips were sailed on the Paul Gauguin in Tahiti, visiting most of French Polynesia including Bora Bora, Fakarava, Moorea and the Marquesas. He was fascinated by Herman Melville’s time spent in the Marquesas where Melville had jumped ship and was captured by cannibals. Other sailings included Tonga, Fiji, New Zealand and Australia.
When flying to destinations was no longer an option, Roy had the idea to cruise the California Coast out of San Pedro – no flying but still able to enjoy the pleasures of cruising. His favorite port was San Francisco and lunch at Scoma’s on the water.
When at home, Roy enjoyed cooking. It was his late-in-life passion. With over 800 cookbooks, he was always working on recipes for specialty parties like St. Patrick’s Day, Oktoberfest and Income Tax Day (all soups and bread). He never stopped researching and creating and improving his recipes. His last recipe was completed just weeks ago.
A Celebration of Roy’s life was held on his 90th birthday that he attended as the guest of honor. It was a beautiful day at Splashes Restaurant, Laguna Beach, overlooking the ocean with loved ones.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.pacificviewcalifornia.com for the Wiegand family.
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